Truth
by SonicH2O
Summary: Kate Austen is an up and coming District Attorney, who has just been assigned to bring down Christian Shephard, a rich doctor who has ties to the powerful crime boss Benjamin Linus. But what happens when she falls for Christians son? Jate AU
1. The Case

_Funny Story guys, You'll all get a kick out of it, like I did (only I more or less wanted to kick myself in the face lol) anyways, as some of you remember I posted like, 3 new story ideas in the last week of October. The day after I posted the last idea, I heard about this really cool thing called NaNoWriMo, national novel writing month, for those of you who haven't heard of it. And you can't use ideas you wrote before the first day of November…. So yeah, how bad was that for me. But I sighed up anyways, and so I need support, b/c while I can promise you at least 3 -4 more updates this month for New Dawn (that's 4 pages a week so not a huge deal) I have to focus on this b/c I really want to participate in this. Hopefully you guys will enjoy this, b/c as you saw with Redemption I power write when reviews are good. And boy I need motivation this month lol!_

* * *

"Congratulations Ms. Austen," Bernard Nadler, long time public defender said, shaking Kate's hand stiffly. Kate bit back a smile.

"Come on Bernard," she said playfully, "Part of you is just as happy as I am to see Tom Friendly behind bars," she said raising an eyebrow and daring him to challenge her. Bernard bit back a smirk, maintaining his professionalism until the bailiff had Tom out of the room, and he was free of Tom's scrutinizing gaze.

"Guys like him are not the reason I became a public defender…I should have been a dentist," Bernard muttered, and Kate chuckled as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. The mood shifted as Bernard, a 50 something man with 2.5 kids and a white picket fence, and now ten grandchildren turned to her, his brow furrowed in concern, "But I'd be careful if I was you, I don't know why Benjamin Linus would let his right hand man go to jail without a fight so…." He sighed, looking at her in such a fatherly way Kate was forced to avert her eyes.

"It was probably because the case was so bullet proof Bernard," Sayid said, clapping a hand onto Kate's back in happiness. "Congratulations," he said sincerely, embracing his friend in a hug. Kate smiled, hugging her boss in return. It had been a long case but finally it was over. Tom Friendly one of Benjamin Linus's lead ring men in L.A's crime circle had been brought down. Appeals, even sped up by incentive money from Ben would take years, and he was looking at a 60 year sentence, no parole; which at his age was life in jail, assuming they couldn't still get the needle for him. Kate preferred the chair, it was more fitting after everything he had done, but beggars couldn't be choosers.

Kate let go of Sayid, suddenly uncomfortable as Kevin stood waiting for her behind the desk. He fiddled with his walkie looking uncomfortable. Sayid shot her a sympathetic smile, before excusing himself and Bernard out of ear shot.

"Hey," she said weakly. He nodded in return, "Thank you for your testimony Kev….it really put the final nail in the coffin on this case," she smiled weakly.

"I wouldn't miss this one," he said, not making eye contact. "I know how important this was to you…" he shifted, looking uncomfortable, "I didn't want to let you down again."

She nodded, feeling a lump in her throat. Last time she'd needed Kevin's testimony for a major crime ring case, they had been together, and for whatever reason, he hadn't shown up to court. Kate had been worried sick out of her mind all throughout the hearing; wondering if the next day she would learn her next trial assignment would be against his murderer when his body washed up from the river. But she'd gone home and found him lying on the ground, passed out drunk; guilty because he'd let himself get paid off. Disgusted, she'd moved out that night.

"I appreciate it," she said quietly, unsure of what else there was to say, but knowing that no matter what he did or said, she would never feel something more for him again. She'd spent enough of her life forced to be around people who ignored what was right, she wouldn't willingly do that, wouldn't knowingly bring that into her life ever again. There was another awkward pause before Sayid came to her rescue, ushering her away under the pretense of 'business'.

In the taxi on the way back to the DA's office Kate sighed, and shifted uncomfortably as she looked out the window. She loved the city, but things had been spiraling downwards in recent years. And Benjamin Linus was one of the biggest causes of that. A long time crime boss, in the last ten years he'd drastically increased his human trafficking along with his selling of illegal substances and weapons, dragging half the city down with him. When they had caught Tom Friendly for murder, Kevin's smoking gun testimony, along with Tom's record, they had known they had Tom nailed. They'd hoped he would cut a deal, testify and get them Ben, but no such luck; he hadn't talked. They'd only removed another limb of the beast; they'd yet to strike its heart. She shifted again feeling Sayid staring at her coolly.

"We really do have business to talk about Kate," he said calmly, his accent thick as he tried to hide his amusement.

"Whats so funny?" she asked turning back to him with a frown.

"You should be happy for what we accomplished today Kate. Tom Friendly was one of Linus's biggest muscle men. We did good work today. You did good work today," He said offering her a small understanding smile, "Don't beat yourself up over the fish we couldn't catch. We'll get him," he added, his face hardening.

"I know," she said with a sigh. Sayid was one of her oldest friends. When she'd first come to the city and the DA's office, he had taken her under his wing, and she'd risen the ranks quickly with him helping her. After just a few short years at the LA office, at the age of 28, she was one of the top prosecutors in the city. She and Sayid always worked well together, sharing a similar thirst for justice; though neither had ever explained to the other what drove them to search for it so deeply.

"I actually may know how we are going to do that," He added, opening the door for her as they exited the cab, briefcases in hand as they marched into their office building. She looked at him startled, and frowned not believing him till she looked into his cool, calm, and determined eyes. He really believed he'd found their ticket, she opened her mouth to inquire further, but was interrupted by a thunderous roar and applause. Kate smiled as her friends and co-workers clapped her and Sayid on the back appreciatively; most of them as glad as they themselves were over the long and hard fought victory over Tom Friendly.

The celebration lasted well past normal office hours, and it was past 10 by the time Kate tracked Sayid down again. He was looking weary, standing near the punch. He politely excused himself when he saw her approach.

"What was it you were saying earlier, about you finding us our ticket to bringing Linus down?" she asked, cutting straight to the chase. He laughed.

"I think I found us someone who we can pursue. A weak link in Linus's inner circle; someone we can get to talk," he explained.

She raised her eyebrows surprised. She hadn't known he had been working on anything, "Who?" she asked, shifting closer to him. Sayid grimaced.

"We will discuss this in my office, I do not wish to let anyone else hear this," he said quietly, and Kate nodded grimly. Corruption, even in their high and mighty establishment, was a fact of life.

Sayid closed the door to his office quietly following Kate in. He moved over behind his desk, and quickly put in the combination on a safe in the corner of his room. Kate frowned; she hadn't realized he was so serious or that he'd invested so much time in this search, especially without her knowing of it. He handed the file to her and opening it her eyes widened. Christian Shephard's face stared up at her; he was one of the cities biggest philanthropists. Sayid wanted to go after him? She sent him a questioning look and he motioned for her to read the file. Her eyes widened as they landed on a handful of pictures of him shaking hands with Benjamin Linus.

"Everything we have on him at the moment is circumstantial. None of it would stand up to the laugh test in court," Sayid said quickly,"But if we can get enough on him, he'll talk. He'll tell us everything we need to bring Linus down," Sayid said confidently.

"Yeah Sayid," she said, handing the file back to him, "But how are we going to find anything on him? He's a golden boy in this city," she reminded him sadly.

Sayid smiled, "I didn't think you'd give up that quickly Kate," he smirked as her brow creased, insulted by the insinuation.

"I didn't say I wouldn't help," she muttered, snatching the file back and plopping onto the couch, spreading the contents of the folder out across the coffee table.

"Tell Cindy to order us some Chinese," she said with a smirk. "We'll be here a while," she said, rolling her eyes. Sayid smiled, rolling out the large white board, and writing Christians name on it.

"Okay, so what do we know about him?" Sayid asked; popping the cap on the marker as Kate skimmed over the file.

Kate sighed and ran a hand through her hair, "Okay…family…a son, a wife…possibly has a second child in Austrailia…geez this guy is a piece of work," she muttered and Sayid chuckled again.

**Later:**

Kate popped a piece of the kong pow chicken into her mouth, twisting the chop sticks between her fingers, her brow furrowed as she stared down at the same picture that she'd been staring at an hour ago when Sayid had started to snore. She glanced back at the board, now a giant web all stretching from Christians name, lines drawn across it, linking him to Ben and various illegal activities. She threw a pillow across the room, hitting Sayid square in the head and he jolted up, sending her a glare.

"I think I know our link. How we're gonna bring Shephard down. Or, who we are going to bring him down with," she said with a smirk as Sayid moved over and joined her. She gestured to the picture she'd been looking at and Sayid raised an eyebrow.

"You want to use his son to bring him down?" Sayid said, sounding less then convinced, as he held up the picture of the dark haired doctor, "You think this guy, this Jack will turn in his own father?"

"Once we're done with him Sayid, absolutely," Kate said, smiling confidently.

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Hopefully you guys enjoyed that.

Obviously Ill update soon if I get reviews. 8 reviews as usual. Thanks for your support, and as I said, I'm still continuing New Dawn, regardless of this fic. So don't worry about that. I just have to prioritize at the moment. Sorry to any Hardcore New Dawn fans…on the bright side the majority of new dawn will come up during the twilight fevor following the movie release, so that's kinda cool and fitting I guess lol


	2. The Con

_Wow guys, Im stunned by the response to this, thank you for all your kind words. Best first chapter ever I think lol_

_Hopefully this is a good second chap. I hope Jates meeting is okay...it was hard to write given the...nature of how it happens lol_

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"Why on earth would the man turn in his own father Kate?" Sayid challenged skeptically.

Kate rolled her eyes and picked up the file, "Look," she said gesturing to the little information Sayid had gathered on Christians son, "It's a report from the Chief of surgery at the hospital he had his residency at; this guy goes on for pages about how 'morally sound' this guy is," Kate rolled her eyes, annoyed by the way the doctor gushed over him; he'd probably just been a suave rich boy who knew whose ass to kiss to advance in the world, "And there are reports from hospital staff of him arguing heatedly with his father," Sayid opened his mouth to argue, "Multiple reports," she said, waving the file, "Multiple instances," she added, looking at Sayid expectantly.

Sayid shifted on his feet, pondering the information. "We don't even know if he knows anything about his father's activities Kate," he said calmly, causing Kate to smile mischievously.

"I guess I'll just have to go find out," she said with a wiggle of her eye brows and a light hearted laugh as Sayid's face took on a look of horror. She elaborated, "He's single," she said, pointing towards the photo of him, clearly displaying his left hand, ring finger mysteriously devoid of a wedding band. "I'll ask him out, fish around a bit, see what he knows," she explained with a shrug. "It won't even be part of the official investigation, so if nothing turns up, if he's completely useless, it won't matter," she said calmly. Sayid ran a hand over his head.

"I believe that sort of behavior is considered highly questionable Kate. Not to mention that if he does know something, he could be very dangerous," he added looking at her with raised eyebrows, and Kate was touched by his genuine concern.

She smiled reassuringly, "I have field experience Sayid," she said calmly, "If it wasn't for the accident I would be with Ana Lucia on the swat runs that bust these guys and not sitting here," she smiled, "no offense," she added as he chuckled, always amused by her need to be involved as much as possible with every case she worked on.

Sayid considered another moment before nodding his okay to her idea, she smiled brightly "There are a few conditions though. If you feel this is something worth while for us to pursue, its going to be on the record," Kate started to protest, "At least with the classified investigation squad I put together. It's run by Ana, and you know she'll rip your head off if you don't tell her," Sayid said, raising an eyebrow as Kate ran a hand through her hair exasperated; Ana Lucia, her college roommate would in fact rip her head off if Kate withheld this from her.

Kate, like Ana, had been pursing a career on the cities SWAT team. Being in on the action, and getting to catch the bastards that ran this city in their nefarious act, they both had lived for it, and had become good friends during their basic training. A few months in though, a car accident had permanently sidelined Kate from front row action. After recovery, she had changed courses, and now, Ana brought in the bad guys, and Kate made sure they stayed put away. It worked out pretty well, but she had never hid the fact from Sayid that she still craved to be a part of the mainstream action. Investigating a suspect; she could do that, and Ana would be more then happy to let her; but of course, Ana would want to be in control of the whole thing. She laughed and nodded at Sayid.

"Yeah, fine," she sighed, "That'll work," she smiled giddily. She was finally going back into the field.

Later:

"Here are those labs Doctor Shephard," Rose said, giving the doctor a kind smile, which he returned eagerly, despite the bags under his eyes.

"Thanks Rose," he said kindly to the elderly nurse, taking the file and flipping it open, digesting the X-ray results in seconds, flipping the file closed again with a pop. Rose smiled as she watched him; his month long sabbatical after his divorce had finally been finalized had done wonders for him. It was true that he was as much a workaholic as ever, but he seemed happier somehow; or at least finally at peace with the end of his and Sarah's marriage. It was a nice change in Rose's mind, since she'd spent the better part of the last decade fusing over his health night and day; the man still refused to take care of himself, staying late into the night and coming ridiculously early in the mornings, even by hospital standards.

Jack smiled as he entered his patients room, a shorter blonde man was being fussed over by an attractive girl with blazing green eyes and long brown hair. The man swatted her hand away from his leg, which was elevated on a chair, playfully and she laughed.

"Bloody hell," he muttered as she made another go for his leg, this time successfully adding another pillow under the injured foot, and she laughed, "Are you satisfied now?" he teased, his British accent thick with sarcasm. Jack cleared his throat with a smile, rounds were a nice change of pace from surgery; he'd forgotten that. He checked the file again quickly.

"Ah…Mister…Pace," he said, giving the man a nod.

"Charlie actually," he said with a smile, "This is Kate," he added, introducing the girl next to him.

Jack extended his hand calmly as was procedure, first to Charlie before turning to Kate, who offered him a small friendly nod before taking his hand. He swallowed hard as his large hand engulfed her smaller one, unable to deny the spark of electricity that shot through his body at the contact. He held her hand a second too long, and returned her smile awkwardly before returning his attention to Charlie; patients and family members, that was not how he planned on meeting anyone again. He put the X-ray up on the wall, flicking the light so that they could see the chart. He turned back to the two of them, frowning slightly as he tried to deduce if Kate was just Charlie's friend or…He shook it off, returning his attention to the patient.

"This is your X-ray Charlie, and nothing appears broken which is good news, so its probably just a bad sprain," he said with a smile. "You should probably lie low for a few days," he added, "If you need crutches one of the nurses can-"

"No that's fine mate," Charlie interrupted, "This is a blessing actually; it means I don't have to paint her apartment anymore," he said gesturing to Kate, who rolled her eyes before flashing Jack a large grin. He swallowed hard again, feeling his jaw clench, surprisingly affected by her piercing green eyes and long wavy hair which she unconsciously brushed out of her face.

"You weren't helping that much till you fell off the latter anyways Charlie," she replied as he made to move himself off the bed, and Kate slung an arm around him to steady him. He howeled when he tried to put pressure on it, and Kate staggered under his weight. Jack moved to help.

"Here," he said, pulling Charlie from her, looping the mans arm over his shoulder, and helping him out of the room.

Kate blushed, "Any chance you can help us to the car?" she asked lightly, and Jack nodded; it had been a pretty light day, there was nothing urgent for him to get to; and he really wanted to spend a bit more time with her.

Charlie howled in pain again as Kate shoved him into the back seat of the car with a chuckle, closing the door and turning to Jack.

"Thanks for your help Doctor….?" She frowned, realizing he hadn't ever introduced himself.

Jack flushed slightly, and laughed, "Jack," he said, offering her a smile. She bit her lip.

"Doctor Jack?" she said raising an eyebrow as grin spread across her face and he laughed again.

"Doctor Shephard," he amended.

She nodded again, "Well, thank you again…Jack," she said, her eyes twinkling in amusement. He nodded again and swallowed, catching Charlie out of the corner of his eye, waving at Kate impatiently.

"You should get your boyfriend home," he said gesturing to the car, with a polite smile and Kate raised her eyebrows again, surprised.

"He's not my boyfriend, just old friends" she said calmly, offering him a coy half smile when he frowned, not seeming convinced. "What?" she laughed, "Don't believe me?" she said teasingly, flashing him another grin. "Tell you what," she said, reaching into her purse and pulling out a business card, "Take this," she said, pushing the card into his hand as she took a step towards him, and he felt her breathe on his face, as she looked up at him from under long eyelashes, her piercing green eyes even more disarming up close, the freckles that were scattered across her cheeks brightly contrasting them, "And call me about dinner sometime," she whispered, breaking the contact quickly and spinning on her heal back towards the drivers side of the car. Jack was sure the unneeded extra sway to her hips had been for his benefit as she flashed him another grin from the drivers' seat, before backing out of the parking lot; leaving Jack standing in a cloud of the cars exhaust. He coughed, waving his hand in front of his face, remembering the card clutched tightly in his fist. Opening his hand he surveyed it; Kate Ryan, assistant editor at a local travel magazine. He frowned suddenly, Sarah's face flashing in his mind, and he stuffed the card into his pocket, vowing to throw it out once inside. He wouldn't do it again, he wouldn't date someone he met at the hospital; it just wouldn't work. He swallowed, pushing Kate's face from his mind as he walked back into the hospital to resume rounds.

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_Kate Ryan huh. Oh boy. Anyways, next chapter you'll meet Christian, Kate will talk with her co-workers about Jack, and you'll also meet a certain blast from our island past-a certain bad ass whose presence shall keep you all on your toes (wiggles eyebrows)_

_anyways, hope you all enjoyed it and as usual:_

_8 reviews= new chap!_


	3. The Godfather

_The response has been stellar guys, thanks so much, glad you like it._

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"That was some bloody nice field work Austen," Charlie said climbing into the front passenger seat as they sat in a traffic jam, his "sprained ankle" obviously not affectign him much, "Not bad for someone whose been out of it…what? Eight years now?" he said offering her a smile.

"Thanks Charlie," she said with a smile, her knuckles white on the steering wheel; she hated traffic. Noticing how tense she looked, he frowned.

"Seriously, no bloke is going to be stupid enough to pass you up after that little bit you did. And the hip swing at the end…," he shook his head to clear the image from his head as she shot him an icy glare, daring him to finish the sentence. He laughed nervously, amending his statement, "No straight man would be able to resist," he nodded confidently. He paused a second before adding, "And if he is gay, bloody hell, we're pulling Ford out of deep cover to do it because that is one assignment even I can't handle," he shivered and Kate laughed.

"He's not gay," she said firmly, her eyes fixed straight ahead on the road, focused on keeping her voice even. Charlie looked at her, head tilted skeptically, "We girls have a sense for these things," she added with smile. There was also the fact that his breath had hitched when she'd moved closer to him, and she'd felt his strong arms and his body tense slightly at her touch. No, he was definitely straight, and unbelievable gorgeous. She'd seen his picture before she'd met him, but she realized it must have been at least a year or two old; his hair had been longer, and he'd been younger, and the photo had given him an arrogant pretty rich boy look. The man she had met had had cropped hair, and the perfect amount of 5 o'clock shadow that in her mind made him a prime candidate to star in the next James Bond movie. She swallowed hard before letting out a breath. This was a job she reminded herself; it was for the betterment of society; that was all.

St. Sebastian's:

"Well?" Rose challenged with a raised eyebrow when Jack remerged from the parking lot.

"Well what?" Jack asked, sounding distracted and suddenly tired. Rose's shoulders slumped irritated by his typical male obliviousness.

"That woman, that charming, pretty, available woman threw herself at you and you turned her down didn't you?" she challenged sounding exasperated, her hands placed on her hips disapprovingly.

Jack laughed at her concern, "Yes," he said calmly, giving her an amused smile. "Now, if you excuse me, I have to get back to work," he added with a chuckle that Rose knew was more for show then it was from sincere amusement.

Rose rolled her eyes, "Your never gonna meet anyone like that hunny," she said lightly, Jack turned around giving her a smile again.

"Not everyone is going to have what you and Bernard have Rose," he reminded her with a soft genuine smile.

She pursed her lips, "Your right; especially not if you never even go on a first date," she hollered as he walked back towards the medical rooms, hearing him let out a chuckle as he went.

Later:

Jack ran a hand through his hair exasperated. He'd been back to rounds for over an hour and he still couldn't get Kate's face out of his head, the business card with her number on it that he'd sworn to throw out was still in his pocket, feeling heavy. He fingered it lightly, debating pulling it out. He curled it in his fist again angrily, gritting his teeth. He stalked down the hall, responding to the page on his beeper. "911; trama," he shook his head again, riding himself momentarily of the piercing green eyes that danced in his mind.

"What do we have?" he asked the nurse as he walked in briskly, headed straight for the mangled mess being wheeled in on a gurney.

"Car crash, this guy went right over the median and got hit by oncoming traffic; that's the steering wheel in his chest," the paramedic said, transferring the IV. Jack swallowed hard, his first meeting with Sarah suddenly flashing in his mind.

"Page Silverman," he ordered a nurse coldly, as he surveyed the damage, "Where's the guy he hit?" Jack asked suddenly.

"He's hear and not doing well Doc," another paramedic yelled, wheeling another man into the room. Swallowing Jack quickly rushed over to him, applying his hands to an open wound.

"Doctor, this ones crashing!" a nurse yelled, and Jack swallowed as the man he was holding went into cardiac arrest; this was too familiar, too real.

"I've got him!" Marc's yelled as he ran into the room, reviving the man with the crash cart on the first try.

Jack breathed a sigh of relief as his patient too was stabilized, and he popped the bloody glove off, pinching the bridge of his nose, trying to block out the flood of memories. Marc clapped him on the back, frowning, knowing exactly what his old friend was thinking about.

"Come on man, take the day off," he said quietly, "Your dad'll get it," he added in a whisper when Jack sent him a questioning look. Jack nodded quietly, walking off without a word to find his father; Marc was right, he did need a break.

He ran a head over his head, irritated as Kate's face again entered his mind. Pushing the button to the elevator with more force then necessary, he stepped in, grateful that he was the lone person on it and lay his head against the back of the room, letting out a long stressed breath.

Stepping out on the executive floor of the hospital he walked down the long imposing hallway to his father's office, which stood at the very end of the hall, watching over all the other offices and the hospital through one way glass windows, quietly scrutinizing their every move. Every time Jack walked it it reminded him of how he'd felt at dinner every night as a child. He opened the door briskly, forgetting to knock.

"Oh sorry to interrupt," he started, seeing Christian glaring at a man sitting across the desk from him. Both turned when he entered and Jacks face lightened happily.

"Hey Mikhail," he said, embracing his fathers old friend and his godfather in a hug.

"Hello Jack," the man said offering him a warm smile, his Russian accent thick. Jack frowned seeing his father's still stoic face, his eyes seething.

"What brings you all the way out here?" Jack asked, deciding to ignore his father, "I thought you were hunting in Montana for the rest of the month?" he said curiously.

Mikhail laughed, his eyebrow scrunching against his black eye patch, "It was cut short I'm afraid," he lied smoothly and smiled, "Your father and I were actually just discussing the next trip. I insist he joins me, and yet we cannot agree on a location," he said with another laugh, turning teasingly to Christian who seemed to have composed himself.

"Is there something you need Jack?" his father asked sounding bored. Jack's jaw tightened, still uncomfortable around his father after their encounter at his AA meeting a few months ago.

"Yeah," he said, his throat dry, "I'm taking the rest of the day off," he said calmly.

"I didn't authorize that," Christian said raising an eyebrow, and Jack felt his hand curl into a fist momentarily.

"I'm not asking," Jack replied evenly.

Christian's jaw tightened and his eyes darkened as he stared at his son. "Mikhail," he said suddenly, breaking eye contact with Jack, "Excuse us for a moment," Christian said nodding towards the door, "I'll be right with you."

Mikhail nodded and exited, leaving the father and son to their silent war.

Christian sighed suddenly, his expression changing to one of pity and he walked around the desk putting a supportive hand on Jack's shoulder, causing him to tense, "Jack, you just got back a month ago, I know your divorce was—" Jack yanked away seething.

"Don't talk to me about my divorce dad," he said, his voice shaking angrily.

Christian put on a hurt expression, "Jack you don't still think that Sarah and I-"

"Don't," Jack shook his head, "Don't talk to me about her or about it. I don't want to hear it. Not from you," he said, still shaking, his jaw clenched as he tried to control himself.

Christian sighed defeated, "Fine, take the day off. But Jack," he added, as Jack moved towards the door, without acknowledging or thanking him for his permission, "I would hate to see you lose focus on your work, "his father said, for the first time sounding genuinely concerned or interested.

Jack gave a short laugh, "Don't worry Dad, work always comes first," and Sarah knew it, he added silently as he opened the door violently and shut it behind himself.

He sighed, and opened his eyes hearing Mikhail chuckle. He offered Jack a sympathetic smile, and patted him on the shoulder supportively.

Jack offered him a smile back, "Retirement treating you well?" he asked conversationally, not in the mood for small talk but feeling obligated.

Mikhail laughed, "Yes it is. I never have to sell another industrial printer again in my life," he chuckled and Jack smiled.

"Good," he said with a nod. Mikhail patted his shoulder.

"Get some rest Jack," he said, opening the door and reentering Christian's office. "You need it," he added as the door closed.

Jack ran a hand through his hair, knowing his godfather was right and went back down the long hallway to go change out of his scrubs.

"Your going to have to tell him soon Christian," Mikhail said darkly, staring at the doctor who was looking at him murderously; Mikhail supposed that the look might have intimidated the average man, but Mikhail only smiled wider; he could take Christian Shephard.

"Jack is not a part of our deal," Christian hissed, "Its my debt, and I've more then paid it. I've done everything Ben has asked of me and more. I've risked my career time and time again to do what Ben wanted me to," he almost yelled, his voice growing frantic.

"A career you would not have if not for Ben's help," Mikhail reminded him with a rye smile.

Christians jaw locked angrily, "This is not Jack's debt to carry," he said again.

Mikhail leaned across the table menacingly, and even Christian Shephard had enough sense for fear to flash momentarily through his eyes; his icy poker reappeared momentarily and he met Mikhail's glare. "Your debt is paid when Ben says your debt is paid," he whispered, turning quickly to leave. Standing at the door he paused, "have a good day Christian," he added, satisfied as he saw Christian swell indignantly as he exited the room.

Later:

Jack gasped as he ran up the last stairs, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, his counted as he finished the last stairs of his tour de stade, collapsing into a bleacher seat exhausted, but unsatisfied. He ran to clear his head; it always worked, running until all he could think about was pushing past the burning pain in his lungs one more time for each step. He'd run harder and faster then ever before, unable to get Kate's face from his mind.

He swallowed hard, as he pulled out her business card again. He'd transferred it from his lab coat to his pocket, still unable to bring himself to dispose of it. He sighed and hung his head confused. He'd done the whole rebound thing with Achara, but was he ready to date again? Was he ready to try and meet someone again? He ran a hand through his hair irritated by his uncertainty.

His thoughts were interrupted as he spotted a couple enjoying a picnic on the amateur stadiums grass. He smiled as he watched them together, startled as a dog and child came into view and toppled onto them interrupting their moment. They laughed happily, and Jack felt his throat tighten.

While he was still unsure about his future where children were concerned, even Jack couldn't deny that he wanted what that couple had; the love and happiness. Even though he'd…failed…with Sarah, he knew he could learn from it, and make it work if he tried again. He wasn't crazy enough to think Kate would magically be that girl, but like Rose had said, he had to at least put himself out there to find out. He fingered the card between his index finger and thumb and let out another breath. He had to take the first step sometime, otherwise he'd never have any chance of having a good, solid, and honest relationship.

Once back to his car he fished out his cell phone, dialing the number, and holding his breath as the ringing started.

"Hello?" her breathless voice asked innocently and sweetly when she answered.

"Hey, ah Kate, its Jack from the hospital," he said, shifting nervously from foot to foot.

She smiled against the phone, "Oh hey, I'm glad you called," she said.

"Yeah, me too," Jack agreed sincerely, "So you said something about dinner?" he asked with a smile.

She laughed, "Yeah, I believe I did."

* * *

_Don't have much to say for once....thanks for the reviews, 8 more =an update as usual!_

_hope you enjoyed Mikhails appearence- for the record though, if he s ever out of character in future chaps, its because I was to scared to go back and like, watch his scenes to observe him lol_


	4. The First

_Okay, I get that there wasn't a lot of Jate in the last chap. whichi s the only reason I'm updating. _

_Im not entirly happy with this "arc" we shall call it. The lack of...angst...more specifically the surplus of fluff is hard to write. I prefer the angst, so thankfully, if you guys review I can push us through this and the angst train can get going for chapter 7 (because once it starts its not stopping till chapter 30)_

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"The wire and mic are good, so you don't have to worry about how you talk, just ya know, be natural," Charlie said with a wave of his hand as he showed Kate the equipment she would be wearing for the date that night. Kate nodded, taking everything in.

"Dude, don't you think like, she needs a safe word or something? Incase he turns out to be some crazy psycho killer?" Hurley asked turning to address Ana, who rolled her eyes.

"I'm glad you got me such a crack team for surveillance Sayid," Ana said dryly. Sayid chuckled.

"He's not going to be a psycho Hurley," Kate said calmly, unable to suppress the start of a giddy smile that was creeping over her face. She was finally back in the field, and if everything went according to plan, they would have Benjamin Linus in handcuffs by the end of the year.

Hurley walked over, holding the small audio transmitter she would wear, a frown spread across his face and his cheeks turned red, as he surveyed her in her form fitting black dress. "Ah…" he said, looking at her chest, reaching his hands out tentatively, "How should I…attach the…um…thing?"

Charlie pushed him out of the way as he rolled his eyes, "Ignore him, he never had a date in high school," Charlie said, showing her where to place the wire with a smile.

"We'll be in the van, monitoring your progress from outside the restaurant," Ana said again, for the 6th time running over the mission, "You probably won't get much out of him after a first date, so your job is to do whatever it takes to get a second one," she said nodding, "But we do need a safe word Kate," she said looking at her friend seriously, "If something goes wrong…,"she shook her head.

Kate rolled her eyes and laughed, "Fine, if I need help, if I'm in danger here's what I'll say; Help! "She said, as Ana gave her annoyed glare.

Ana opened her mouth to argue, but was interrupted by the knock on the apartment door, going pale instantly, "Seriously; since when is a guy on time to pick someone up?" Ana muttered, ushering the rest of the investigation team into the kitchen.

Kate felt anticipation bubble in her chest; chalking it up solely to being back under cover, caught up again in the rush of field work, Kate brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes as she opened the door, a large smile on her face.

"Hi," she said, as she opened it, eyes going wide slightly at the sight. Jack was looking at her with a smile, wearing a black jacket and a dark red button shirt. He'd shaved, but the hints of a scruff were already reappearing on his chin; on the whole, he cleaned up really well.

"Hey," he returned, and she watched his eyes travel over her quickly, "You look…great," he said sincerely, meeting her eyes again.

"Kate, for the record, this wire monitors heart rate too," Charlie's teasing voice echoed in her ear, a reminder of the bug she had in her ear to keep them in communication with her. Kate felt her cheeks grow red.

"Shall we?" Jack said, glad he sounded so much more confident then he felt. It wasn't like he hadn't been with someone since his divorce, but not in the formal dating sense. Kate smiled, taking his out stretched arm; resisting the urge to role her eyes at his fake gentlemanliness. No son of a scumbag like Christian Shepherd, or anyone associated with Linus would act that chivalrous for anything other then show.

**Later:**

"Those are some insane hours to keep. Seriously, when do you sleep?" Kate asked, surprising herself with her genuine curiosity, and even slight concern.

Jack chuckled; his hands stuffed in his pockets as they walked the peer, watching the sun go down over the ocean. "I have a coffee machine in my office," he said with a crooked half smile, "You can't tell anyone though, its not really protocol," he said, bending down to add the last bit in a whisper.

Kate laughed, relieved at how well things had been going. Dinner had been nice, comfortable, with surprisingly few awkward silences; any silences on her end though had been filed with Charlie and Hurley's voices, teasing her for her convincingness, and asking her to talk more about her fake photography career. To Kate's surprise though, she hadn't needed to fake having a good time at all; Jack's gentlemanly act had persisted all through dinner, and while she was still on guard around him given his association to Ben, he had been charming and fun to be around the entire time.

"You really do live on the edge," she teased him with a laugh, glad to see him smirk.

"You'd be surprised," he said with a nod of his head, a small smile in his eyes, and Kate's curiosity was piqued, as was Ana's.

"Kate, don't let that hang there," Ana's voice entered her ear, reminding her again of her mission.

"Oh yeah?" she challenged flirtatiously, "You got big dangerous secrets your not sharing with me?" she said, cocking an eyebrow teasingly, despite her intense interest.

Jack laughed but didn't respond.

"Bodies buried in the back yard?" she added, reminding herself to keep her voice light.

Jack smiled sadly, "No, nothing like that," he said with a small chuckle, running a hand over his head, suddenly uncomfortable.

"I don't get out here enough, " he said after a beat, changing the subject as he raised his head with a nod towards the sun set, "Its quite a view," he added offering her a warm smile.

Kate's face fell slightly, and she heard Charlie mutter a "bloody hell" in her ear at him changing the subject, but she recovered quickly; they hadn't expected him to spill everything on the first date, but his aversion to the subject suggested there was definitely something he was trying to keep hidden.

"Yeah, it really is," she agreed.

"You ever come out here for a photo shoot or anything?" Jack asked conversationally.

Kate flushed and bit her lip, wishing Ana had given her a less interesting profession as a cover, something Jack wouldn't want to bring up, like a telemarketer, instead of something that had her lying about all the exotic locations she'd been to. "No," she said honestly, turning to him with a smile, "But I probably should," she added, her voice lowering as she stepped into his chest, her hands resting lightly on it, feeling his heartbeat through the fabric, "It's an extremely romantic place at this hour," she whispered, a coy smile playing on her lips as his eyes widened, surprised by her sudden forwardness and he swallowed hard, before composing himself to offer her a sexy grin.

"It is huh?" he whispered, his head lowering slightly, his forehead almost touching hers, his hot breath on her face causing her breath to hitch involuntarily.

She swallowed hard, feeling a stirring in her stomach; he was attractive and charming; no one could fault her for having eyes she rationalized to herself; but he was helping hide his father's illegal happenings from the government, she reminded herself. She closed her eyes as his nose brushed hers, their lips millimeters apart.

"Bloody Hell, her heart rate just jumped," Charlie voice boomed with laughter, causing Kate to jump.

Jack gave her a confused and puzzled look but pulled back as Kate's cheeks flushed. "Sorry," he said quietly, turning back towards the sunset. Kate clenched her jaw, seething silently, making a mental note to have Ana pull Charlie off communication detail for future dates-if she got a second date after sending him mixed signals like that.

The silence was suddenly uncomfortable and she shifted self consciously next to him, debating what to say next, before Jack turned to her, giving her a large happy grin, "I'm having a really good time," he said reassuringly, nodding his head.

Kate laughed, "You sound surprised," she teased, and he chuckled again; and Kate watched the way his eyes sparkled happily. How someone this kind and warm could be involved in the kinds of things Ben Linus was up to she didn't' think she would ever understand.

"Not surprised, just glad," he said, as they started making their way back towards the street and Jack flagged down a cab. Falling again into a comfortable conversation in the cab, Jack opened her door for her on the way out, and she blushed despite herself, knowing the gentlemen thing was some sort of act but finding herself enjoying the treatment none the less. He had walked her to the door silently, and Kate felt her palms growing sweaty. What exactly did he expect from a first date? How far was she willing to take this?

"I had a lot of fun tonight," he said quietly, breaking the silence.

She smiled, satisfied, "Me too," she said sincerely. She fidgeted with her key, twisting it between her fingers.

He laughed suddenly, running a hand through his hair, in a gesture Kate had quickly learned was done out of self consciousness. "I haven't done this in a while," he admitted, his cheeks turning red. "So I'll just…I can call you right?" he said, his brow pulled together in confusion and uncertainty; the innocence and sincerity of the question making her feel like she was sixteen again.

Kate let out a soft laugh, "Yeah, I'd like that," she said smiling.

Jack nodded, "Good," he swallowed, as the atmosphere changed again, and Kate felt her heart accelerate at the dark look in his eyes. He leaned in, and Kate realized as her eyes fluttered shut that she would be more then happy to let him into the apartment, to do whatever he wanted; all in the name of the mission of course. Her breath hitched again as his hot breath hit her face, breathing into her slightly parted mouth. His lips suddenly brushed over her cheek, his lips searing hot as they rested momentarily on the soft skin there, and her eyes shot open, the slight scruff tickling her cheek as he removed his lips from her cheek. She swallowed hard, willing her heart rate back down as Charlie whistled in her ear.

"Good night Kate," he said quietly, offering her a smile as he walked away; oblivious to the whirlwind of emotions she had just experienced.

She swallowed again as she watched his retreating form. Maybe the perfect gentlemen thing really was more then just an act, she realized as coherent thought returned to her.

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_Yeah once again I apologize. My fluff is bad. Anyways, 8 reviews for an update. Incase I don't update, happy thanksgiving everyone!_


	5. The Run

_Thanks for the reviews guys, hopefully you can stick with me through 2 more chapters of my attempts at fluff before the fun starts (okay, the angst, but I think its fun lol)_

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Kate closed the door to her apartment and rested her head against the door, leaning against it and let out a long breath. She closed her eyes, feeling her cheeks turn red as Jacks smiling face entered her mind, and she swallowed.

"He's a criminal Kate," she muttered to herself, momentarily forgetting the wire that was still attached to her chest.

"Excellent deductive powers Sherlock, but did we miss something? We don't have any evidence yet," Charlie's voice asked and she jumped again.

"Here's an idea, why don't you guys just come up here," she said gritting her teeth suddenly irritated by the lack of privacy. She ripped the wire off, throwing it onto the table with a thud. Charlie yelped in her ear, startled by the action and she pulled the earpiece out.

A moment later she heard an impatient knock on the door and opened it to Ana Lucia, a hand on her hip, looking at her with a mixture of boredom and amusement.

"You've always liked um tall dark and handsome," she teased and Kate rolled her eyes as her friend brushed past her into the living room, making herself right at home as she pulled a beer out of the fridge. "But ya did good," she added as she kicked her feet up on the table.

Kate laughed, sitting down across from her friend, "Thanks, but on this second date, make sure Charlie can't talk to me during it okay?" she said with a smile.

**Later:**

Kate sighed as she turned again in her bed, checking the clock, and groaning in irritation when she saw the time. It was half past 3 and she still hadn't gotten a minute of sleep. She rubbed her hand unconsciously over her cheek where Jack had kissed her; every time she closed her eyes Jack's face entered her mind, and now, looking at the date in retrospect, she was beginning to feel bad for lying to him. She groaned again as she reminded herself of everything Benjamin Linus had done, running over the list of charges they hoped to hold him to, and reminded herself of everything Jack was probably helping his father do for Ben and again felt the guilt temporarily subside. When it bubbled up again in her chest she gave an irritated sigh realizing she wasn't going to get much sleep, and gave up, getting out of bed and pulling on shoes and a t-shirt. There was only one thing Kate Austen could do at times like this; run.

Pulling her car up at the amateur sports stadium she was surprised to see that she wasn't the only one there, a man was stretching, his back to her as he warmed up, apparently about to run the bleachers just like her. She laughed lightly, remembering the time she had tried to get Kevin to run with her. He'd made if up two flights before vomiting into a trash can exhausted.

Approaching the man, ready to stretch out as well, her eyes widened as he turned around at her approaching foot steps.

"Kate?" Jack asked stunned.

"Hey," she said weakly, equally surprised.

"What are you doing here?" Jack asked, straightening up. Kate swallowed hard as she looked at him, his t-shirt hugging him tight in all the right places, and she frowned as her eyes settled on his forearm, noticing the tattoos there.

"I try to come out here as much as I can," she explained, avoiding the fact that he was the reason she wasn't fast asleep at that very moment. "You?" she asked, turning the conversation away from herself as quickly as she could.

He smiled, "I try to come out here as much as I can before hospital shifts, clears my head, gets me ready for rounds," he explained calmly. "You do this often?" he asked her after a beat.

She shrugged, "Sometimes. I've tried to keep up with it since college, but," she laughed, "Obviously its hard to work it into a normal schedule," she said, smiling teasingly.

He laughed and nodded, "You ran in college?" he asked, sounding interested.

Kate laughed, "I've always run," she said before she could stop herself, stunned that she was revealing true things about herself to him. He laughed, and she smiled, again enjoying the sound. She watched him for a moment and a grin spread over her face.

"What?" he asked seeing her scheming and coy grin.

"I was just thinking…" she said, closing the distance between them, "We should race," she challenged, smirking as his eyes flashed at the challenge; her hunch had been right, he was competitive.

"Oh?" he asked, lightly, amused and enjoying her flirtatiousness, even at this unglamorous hour in the morning.

She nodded, "Winner gets to choose what we do for our next date," she added and his face broke into a grin.

"Okay," he agreed with a nod of his head.

She smiled back cheekily, "Good, on three then," she said. She took off on two, half way up the first row before she looked back, seeing his stunned face. She stuck her tongue out at him, which sent him into motion, his long legs closing the distance quickly as he took the stairs two at a time to reach her.

"Cheater," he huffed, smiling at her and she laughed, before they settled into a comfortable silence, running up and down the bleachers together, conserving their breath, but finding the silence surprisingly comfortable.

They ran silently, whenever one pulled ahead it didn't last long, as the other would soon push ahead and pass them, the back and forth lasted till the last few columns, neck in neck their steps settled into a pattern, in sync as they climbed the stairs side by side, both breathing hard. Turning about to run the last flight, they both tried to push themselves harder, to get ahead, but neither had anything left and they collapsed into a heap at the top simultaneously, breathing hard; a tie.

Kate watched Jack pull himself off the concrete and he offered a hand to her, which she took, giving him a breathy thank you as they settled into the seats still gasping for breath. After a moment Kate calmed herself enough to send him a smile, "I totally beat you," she breathed and he laughed.

"Oh really," he said, his eyes dancing in amusement. She nodded, still fighting for breath. He gave in with another chuckle, "So where is our next date going to be?" he asked with a smirk and she felt her face pulling into a large excited grin at the thought.

She considered for a second, and Jack watched amused as her face scrunched up deep in thought, her hair plastered to her forehead as her chest rose and fell heavily, still tired from their run. She turned back to him with a grin, "You spend 90 plus hours at a hospital and in your free time run a tour de stade," she said giving him a disapproving look. "You need to have some fun," she said seriously, and Jack laughed.

"Last night was fun," he offered and she blushed. "So where are we going?" he asked.

She smiled and leaned over to him, their breathing still ragged as she got inches from his face, "It's a surprise," she whispered, watching him swallow hard at her breath hitting his ear. "Tomorrow night Jack, 6 o'clock," she added quietly before she pulled back giving him a mischievous smile and stood to leave.

"Kate," he called after a minute, standing and walking down the steps towards her, he ran a hand over his head nervously, "I know you wanted to chose our next date, but you wouldn't want to go grab something to drink would you?" he smiled, "Like a water," he added and she laughed.

"You have time still?" she asked, checking her watch, "You don't have to get to the hospital?" she asked, glad to spend more time with him, hoping she could get more out of him, something to report back to Ana and Sayid about.

He shifted slightly, realizing what time it was and he rubbed his head again, "Wanna follow me?" he asked after a moment, "I do need to get over, but we could get something at the cafeteria if you want?" he offered.

She brightened at his offer, realizing she might see Christian Shephard or get some insight into how things worked at the hospital, "Yeah, that sounds good," she said, as they walked towards their cars.

**Later:**

"So this is St. Sebastian's cafeteria," Kate said lightly, playing with the heap of food on her plate that didn't look entirely edible. Jack laughed as he watched her.

"You don't like it?" he asked amused.

Kate made a face, glancing between him and the food on her plate before answering, "I think I'd find better things to eat on a deserted island," she said dryly.

"That's why I stuck with the water," he said, shaking the bottle slightly. She laughed before her face turned into a frown.

She frowned as she thought over what she knew about him. He worked insane hours, regularly pushed himself through running a tour de stade, and didn't even eat breakfast." You really don't take very good care of yourself do you?" she whispered sadly, more to herself then to him, but the sudden darkening of Jack's face showed that he had heard. Kate's face went red as she realized she'd probably crossed the line.

"I do," he said quietly after a moment, his brow scrunched, "That's why I'm not eating here," he added, his smile returning and Kate let out a breath, glad she hadn't upset him.

She smiled as they again fell into comfortable conversation, mystified by how easy it was to be around him. Looking down Kate winced; they'd been there nearly 40 minutes. Jack winced when she told him, "Yeah, I do have to get going," he said, rubbing his head, "Sorry we have to cut this short, but I'll see you tomorrow right?" he asked, giving her his signature grin that had started to make her stomach do flip flops.

"Yeah, I can't wait," she beamed, and rolled her eyes as he shifted uncomfortably; he was still going to be the gentlemen. Without allowing herself time to reconsider she reached an arm up around his head and pulled his face to hers, kissing him quickly but suggestively on the lips, feeling his lips pull into a smile as they pulled apart. "See you soon," she whispered breathlessly, as she left without giving him time to respond.

Jack watched as the automatic double doors slide open and she left, he rubbed his head. She was definitely one of a kind he mused. And he was loving every minute of it.

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_Yay , Kate has a healthy outlet for her need to run in this fic!!! _

_And poor Jack's falling for her. We'll see his opinion a bit more in the next chapter before Kates date-its the one date I'm 100% proud of writing. Next chapter is a big one, you'll be getting it sometime after the holiday season(thursday) so review and I'll get on that sooner instead of later._

_happy turkey day and 8 reviews gets you a big chapter!_


	6. The Notebook

_Sorry about the wait guys. Over break,(when I intended to do massive amounts of writing) I got distracted by an awsome book series, so I'm a bit behind in chapters for this fic. Anyways, I'm sorry for how, 'chunky' this chapter is. I didn't bother with long transitions, I just wanted to get the scenes down that I wanted. _

_Reviews have been stellar, so I hope you all continue to enjoy. This is however the last chapter of my painful fluff, so (yippy!)_

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Jack rubbed his head as he approached the nurse's desk for a chart, sticking out his hand absentmindedly for Rose to hand it to him. She raised an eyebrow, her hand resting on her hip in a disapproving manner.

"What?" Jack said biting back a smile in an attempt to look as serious as she did; he failed. He was in much too good of a mood to brood.

"I saw you with that girl in the cafeteria," Rose challenged, not bothering to hide the "I-told-you"-ness from her tone, or how excited she was.

Jack laughed, "So?" he said, his face lighting into an even larger grin as he let his mind drift back to thoughts of Kate.

"She's the one you were going to turn down, from the parking lot," Rose continued, as Jack continued to play dumb, "I thought you weren't going to go out with her."

Jack shrugged noncommittally, enjoying the way she was looking at him, wanting details and information, something his own mother never bothered for. It made him feel like he was in high school again, being nagged at like this, but in a good way. "I changed my mind," he said, smirking as her eyes widened in frustration.

"AND?" Rose's voice became almost shrill.

He laughed again, revealing his teeth as he beamed, "And you were right," he said as he bent over, grabbing the file off of the desk before he walked down the hall, unable to wait for Saturday night.

**Saturday night:**

"You hooked it," Jack laughed as she shot him a withering glare, her ball hitting off the side of a rock and bouncing back towards the mouth of the putting green.

She rolled her eyes and set up for another shot, swinging the putt putt club for practice before setting her eyes on the hole again, "Ya know the ladies tee at the club is about 10 feet closer," he teased watching her face scrunch in determination.

"Shut up Jack," she said with a smile, turning her attention back to the hole, with one careful putt of the club hitting the ball in. "Hole in one," she said triumphantly turning to him with a smirk.

"Hole in two," he corrected raising his eyebrows, and she laughed. He lined up his shot, sinking the ball into the hole after two swings, leaving them tied at the end of the first hole.

She laughed, when on the ninth hole Jack chipped the ball out of the green and into a bush across the small fake creak that ran though the mini golf course, "You really put it in there," she said wincing. He jumped across the 3 foot wide creak to get his ball, clearing a rock when he found it, determined to make the shot, "You could just take a point," she reminded him, a smirk playing across her lips.

He smiled at her darkly, "I can make it," he said with a smile, aiming up his shot, and chipping the ball back across the green and it bounced into the hole with a thunk. Kate felt her mouth open slightly, impressed.

He came back across and put his hand on her shoulder, "See," he said smiling at her. She laughed.

"I think your gonna have to show me how you did that," she said, pulling on his arm to lead him towards the next hole.

Kate lined up her club at the next hole to make a shot when she felt Jack's form press against her back. She swallowed hard as his hands came around and rested on top of hers, her mind suddenly blank as she felt herself lean back against his strong chest. "What are you doing?" she whispered, her voice not as strong as she'd hoped.

"You said I had to help you," he whispered, his breath going right into her ear causing her own breathing to hitch. She could feel his smirk and knew it had been intentional. She composed herself and turned in his arms, wrapping hers around his neck locking them together, a smile playing at her lips.

"Is this your attempt at being smooth?" she said raising an eyebrow teasingly causing him to laugh. She couldn't help but join in, the sound of his voice and the way his eyes lit up when he smiled and laughed was contagious to her.

"You asked me to," he reminded her, not raising his voice as he let his lips brush hers so lightly she wasn't sure it had been intentional. His hot breath hit her face again and she felt her heart rate speed up.

Unable to think up a clever retort as his warm hands held steadily on her hips, tracing the thin line between her t-shirt and jeans, she simply closed the distance, pressing her lips against his and playing with his bottom lip. His arms tightened around her and she felt the world disappear around her, focused so solely on the kiss. For one bliss filled second, she forgot everything else, there was nothing but her and Jack, and by the way he responded, she knew he felt it too; but the moment was cut short when a gentlemen cleared his throat loudly. Kate pulled back, her cheeks flushing brightly as she looked at the family waiting in line behind them, the man looking at them disapprovingly, while the mother was covering their sons eyes with her hand, her mouth hanging open slightly. It was only then that Kate realized Jack's hand was half way up her t-shirt.

They both muttered apologies as they pulled apart, moving silently and quickly to the next hole embarrassed at being caught.

They stood in awkward silence at the next hole for a moment, until Jack awkwardly motioned for her to take her shot. As Kate prepared to line up her shot she fell over her club, laughing.

Jack stood next to her, his arms folded over his chest, a serious expression on his face.

"It's not funny," he scolded, but from the slight quiver in his voice, she knew he was having trouble keeping a straight face.

"Yes it was," she said, and soon he was laughing too.

**A Few Days Later:**

"He's not working with his father," Kate said again, growing exasperated by the questioning looks Sayid and Ana were throwing each other, as if she wasn't even there.

"Kate, just because he seems like a nice—" Sayid said, trying a diplomatic approach, his eyebrows raised as if he was explaining something to a small child.

"No listen, on our date, we started talking about politics," Kate said, running an equally frustrated hand threw her hair. They had gone out a forth time after their mini golf date. Just a conventional dinner and a movie date; well, 30 minutes of a movie, before they'd been "asked to leave". It had been a blessing though, Jack had been mere inches from discovering the wire she was wearing. She would have to convince Ana not to make her wear it on the next date, he might find it and blow her cover. "At dinner we were talking politics, and all on his own Jack just went off bashing how horrible Ben is, how he's ruining the city," she said defensively. Everyday it got harder to look at his face in the 'known accomplice's' file; Jack was innocent, he was on their side. She needed them to see that.

"So he's a dead end," Sayid said calmly.

"No!" Kate said, panic and terror rising in her. If he was a dead end then she wouldn't have a reason to keep seeing him; Kate Ryan wouldn't exist anymore. "No," she repeated composing herself because of Ana and Sayid's surprised expressions, "He'll help us," she said confidently, "We can still use him to bring Ben down," she said calmly, her words sounding false even to her own ears. She didn't want to use Jack, she wouldn't; she swallowed hard as the reality of her situation hit her again. That's exactly what she'd been doing; how she'd met him had even been a lie; a set up. The guilt hit her again and she resisted the urge to fall over, her stomach aching in pain and her legs going weak at the thought.

Ana and Sayid seemed convinced though, and Sayid nodded, "If you really think you can convince him to help us, we can give you a little more time," his face hardened, "But not much longer Kate, I don't want us wasting time. I want Ben in handcuffs by Christmas," he added, his voice getting dangerously low.

Ana nodded, and Kate swallowed. "Yeah, okay," she said weakly, mustering the falsest feeling smile she'd ever faked. Sayid nodded and departed. Ana stayed back, staring at Kate quietly from across the room until Sayid's foot falls stopped echoing in the hall way.

Kate sat down on the couch across from her friend, shifting uncomfortably under her old friend's intense gaze. "Do you have feelings for him?" she asked finally after an unbearably long silence. Kate's head shot up.

"What? No," she said quickly, her jaw clenching defensively as she felt her heart pound against her chest.

Ana didn't look convinced and her frown deepened as she leaned forward in her chair, "Because if you did, it would be the job of a responsible agent to remove themselves from the case," she said quietly, staring Kate straight in the eye.

Kate leaned forward to meet her friends gaze, "Then it's a good thing you have a responsible agent on the case, who would remove themselves" she said, her voice calm and even despite the fact that her palms were sweating and her stomach was twisted in a knot.

They stared at each other a long moment before Ana let out a long breath and leaned back in her chair, apparently satisfied. "Fine," she said, her voice serious. She broke into a large grin, "Now let's order Chinese," she said, and Kate waited until Ana left the room to get the phone from the kitchen before letting out a long uneasy breathe. She had not fallen for Jack Shephard she reminded herself sternly.

**The Next Night:**

"Pizza's good right?" Jack asked from the kitchen.

"Yeah," she yelled back from the living room of Jack's apartment, looking around casually. It was small and clean, but it felt cold. There was nothing personal about it, no pictures, nothing to make it feel like a home. She frowned in concern. He worked so hard, he deserved to come home to something better then this cold place. He came in from ordering and wrapped his arms around her from behind, resting them on her hips as he kissed her neck lightly, she leaned back into his touch, allowing his presence to pull her from her thoughts. She made a mental note to talk to him about it later before allowing herself to fully melt back into his embrace.

"So what movie did you get?" he whispered curiously, gesturing to the small Blockbuster bag in her hand.

She smiled sheepishly before handing it to him as she pulled him down onto the couch. "The Notebook?" he said skeptically, shooting her a look before sighing in defeat, "I should have known asking you to pick one up was just begging for a chick flick," he muttered with a smile as he went to put it in.

"Well if it's anything like the movie we went out to see you won't have to worry," she said with a smile and he laughed, "We won't even be paying attention," she purred as he joined her again on the couch.

He laughed as she pulled back from kissing him, "I know how chick flicks work," he assured her, "You're gonna cuddle up next to me and bawl your eyes out," he said playfully and she rolled her eyes but snuggled deep into his arms anyways.

He was right of course, she was engrossed in the movie as she rested her head on jack's chest. To his credit, he had sat silently, watching and paying attention. She had sat up excitedly when Noah took Allie out to the lake and rowed while they fed the swans. Jack shifted next to her uncomfortably as they kissed madly in the rain.

"I'll be right back," he muttered silently, putting a hand on her shoulder as he left, just as Noah slammed Allie up against the wall of their house, tearing at her shirt. She frowned, and watched Jack walk out onto the small deck of his apartment, leaning over it defensively. She paused the movie, concerned by his change in behavior. Shivering, she wrapped a blanket around herself as she went out to him, putting hand on his shoulder to get his attention.

He turned to her and frowned, "You didn't have to stop the movie," he said, sounding guilty, but still looking distracted. She leaned in closer to him and rubbed his arm.

"What's wrong?" she said quietly, "Talk to me," she added when he hesitated as if looking for an excuse. He sighed, and shifted uncomfortably.

"I guess…I just don't find it romantic yet…." He said quietly, having trouble finding his words and he ran a hand over his head nervously, causing Kate to smile despite herself.

"What do you mean?" she asked frowning. It was one of the most romantic moive's ever made.

He shifted again and sighed. "Sarah, "he said quietly and Kate's frown deepened; Jack's ex wife had come up fleetingly on their first date. All she knew was that he had been married, it was over, and there wasn't a chance in hell there was a spark left. "…She left me…for someone else," he said quietly, his gaze fixed straight ahead, out towards the skyline of the city, unable to meet her eyes and Kate swallowed hard; pushing a way the wave of anger she felt for the woman. She'd had Jack, no lies, no deception and she'd chosen to hurt him. She'd betrayed him; for the second time in her life Kate seriously contemplated murder. She shivered, pushing away the thought, and leaned in closer to Jack, taking his hand in hers and pulling his face around to meet her eyes with the other. "I guess…I guess I just can't feel happy for Noah and Allie when I still feel like Lon sometimes," he said quietly and somewhat apologetically.

"Jack…" she said quietly, her finger running gently over his cheek, offering him a small sincere smile, "Just because you weren't Sarah's Noah doesn't mean you aren't somebody's," she said before she realized it. His eyes opened wider, and Kate's did too in alarm, realizing how that had sounded. "Uh, I didn't…I mean…" she started, not wanting to amend the statement, but petrified of his response to it all the same.

He smiled softly and brought his face closer to hers, his thumbs gently tracing her cheeks as his breath warmed her face in the crisp night air, "I know," he said quietly, settling her worries, "But thank you," he whispered, his voice heavy as he captured her lips in a kiss that sucked the breath from her lungs. She molded against his body, surrendering to the feel of him, as she let him pull her towards the couch; consequences be damned. His shirt soon found its way to the floor, as she settled on his bare chest breathing heavily.

His hands halted her as they moved towards his pants, "Are you sure about this?" he whispered, his breathing hard, but ever the gentlemen.

Kate's mouth went dry as reality came rushing back to her. She was with him for the mission, or at least that was suppose to be the reason she was here. It wasn't though she realized painfully. It hadn't been since their first date. She did want this. She swallowed hard, suppressing the guilt, "Yeah," she said honestly, her voice tight from emotion, "More then anything," she added as she pushed her lips back over his in a slow tender kiss. As he pulled back the buttons of her shirt minutes later, Kate thanked god that Ana hadn't made her wear the wire.

* * *

_Oh boy, well obviously you guys can see why this might cause some angst lol. Anyways, enjoy and I promise to get an update out ASAP (just as soon as I get my 8 reviews)_

_I hope everyone had a nice holiday btw! (if ya know, it was a holiday for you)_


	7. The Confession

_I know, Im horrible lol. I took a holiday hiatus, sorry about that. I got busy distracted etc. But don't worry, the fic. was never going to be abandoned, I'm enjoying the plot to much, even if as usual I find this chapter lack luster in the emotion department. (and this is one that needed it) I was exhausted when I wrote this so I apologize for the spelling...and for the blandness of it._

_Hopefully this one doesn't stink as much as I think it does, and happy holidays_!

* * *

Kate smiled sleepily as she felt a strong warm arm tighten around her waist, pulling her closer to the warm chest she was resting on. She sighed contently, keeping her eyes closed as she wrapped her right arm across Jack's stomach. Her eyes shot open suddenly as Jack's name triggered her memory of the night before; memories of how much she wanted to be where she was right now, but of how much she shouldn't be. She swallowed back the guilt and pushed her head up from resting on his shoulder. A small smile played across her lips as she watched him sleep; she'd never seen him look so relaxed, her hand reached out involuntarily and she stroked his cheek. This was definitely where she wanted to be, but she felt the reality of her predicament closing in around her; she couldn't keep lying to him. Not now, he meant too much to her. He deserved the truth.

But she couldn't give it to him. There was too much at stake, she couldn't risk blowing the DA's only chance of bringing down Benjamin Linus. Kate swallowed hard as she quietly detangled herself from his arms, wiping away a stubborn tear that had made its way out of her eye with the back of her hand as she grabbed her jeans. She had to be quiet, if he looked at her with those beautiful dark brown eyes of his again she knew she would crack; she would tell him everything she wasn't suppose to, everything she couldn't. She had to get out before he woke up and made her compromise everything that she, Sayid, and the entire DA's office had been working towards for so long. She had to run. Maybe one day, when this case was behind them she could come back and try to make things work, make Jack Shephard and Kate _Austen _work, but until then, she felt her throat constrict at the thought, she had to leave. It was for the best she reminded herself, trying unsuccessfully to muffle a sob.

Jack stirred and with a groan opened his eyes. He stared at her blankly, standing half dressed at the end of the bed for a long moment, before a concerned frown spread over his face. He checked the clock before coming to stand next to her.

"It's 3 in the morning, is everything okay," he asked sounding concerned, as his arms reached out tentatively to hold her; unsure as to why she was on the verge of collapsing in tears.

Kate shook her head slowly, No, everything was far from okay, farther from okay then it had been in a long time, she thought to herself, and brushed his hand away, swallowing back her tears to compose herself.

He frowned, "Hey, come on, talk to me," he said, his voice still tender with concern, but firmer now, as he ignored her silent request and held onto her anyway.

She swallowed hard and let out a shaky breath, "Jack I have to go," she said, trying to be firm as she gave a half hearted tug on her arm, hoping he would let go. He held tight, his grip firm but tender; and that was just making this all the harder.

She managed to fight her way free, and stumbled a step back. His hands caught her again, but she shot him an angry glare that made him back off instantly.

He sighed, exasperated, and ran a hand through his hair as his eyebrows pulled together in concern, "What's going on Kate?" he asked quietly.

She swallowed hard, and finished putting on her shoe before she answered, "You don't want me to be here Jack," she said quietly, not looking up at him from her position sitting on the end of his bed.

He blinked in confusion before kneeling down between her legs, he took his big callous hand and tilted her face to meet his, "Yeah I do Kate," he whispered quietly. "More then anything," he affirmed seriously, concern still shining through his dark eyes. She about threw her head back to scream in frustration. Damn him for being so kind, for being so trusting, for caring about someone who wasn't more then a lying pile of scum on the bottom his shoe.

Damn him for being so perfect, Kate thought, as she sniffled, and pushed him back, standing and heading towards the door. "Well you shouldn't want me here Jack; You're better off without me and-" she said, forcing her voice to be cold and detached, usually, after all her years of practice that was easy, but this time she couldn't stop it from cracking.

He took her wrist again, stopping her just before she could turn the knob, "Kate…" he trailed off, not knowing what to say, only knowing that he didn't want her to walk out.

"My names not Kate Ryan," she whispered quietly, not able to meet his eye as she said it.

This finally got his attention and in surprise he dropped her wrist. She turned back to look at him. He was frowning and trying to make words come out as he stared back at her; her face scrunched together adorably as she fought a losing battle with herself to not cry. His mouth opened and closed silently a few times, unable to form a coherent thought beyond the fact that this women, who so quickly had made him care and had made him care more then he ever had before, who was funny, and breathtaking, and more then anything he could have dreamed of, wasn't who she said she was. He swallowed hard as she stared at him patiently, waiting for his response.

"Who…," he ran a hand over his head; unable to believe he had to ask her this," Who are you?" he asked hoarsely, his voice cracking.

"My real name is Katherine Austen," she said quietly, avoiding his eyes. Now that she'd opened the gate, she knew she would give him all the information he asked of her; she couldn't stop herself, she cared about him too much; lying by evasion was one thing, but she couldn't tell him lies anymore; she wouldn't. She swallowed hard as she realized what that meant; she'd compromised the mission, and she'd lost him, all at once.

He blinked in surprise, "The District Attorney?" he asked sounding confused, his voice still low and raw.

She nodded.

He shook his head in confusion, "Why would you have to…there's no reason you should have to lie to me about-"

"Unless I was undercover," she said hollowly, her lip trembling as she stared at him.

His frown deepened, and his jaw clenched.

"Undercover to investigate what?" he asked hoarsely, his voice taking on a new, angrier edge, as the implications of her words sunk in.

She swallowed and averted her eyes, unable to see the new look of betrayal in his, "To investigate your fathers ties to Benjamin Linus," she said quietly, her arms folded around herself defensively.

Jack took a step backwards and let out a jagged breath that made it seem like he just been punched in the gut before he composed himself, and stepped forward again towards Kate, "MY father," he hissed, "Is one of this cities biggest philanthropist's! He's opened almost a dozen free clinics in the city-"Jack said, his voice growing louder and angrier with every word.

Kate closed her eyes, unable to stand the look in his eyes as she cut him off, hoping she could make him see the truth, "And people go missing from the clinic Jack, one or two a month," she looked up at him. He stared back at her silently seething, but listening all the same, "And my people, we've found some of the people that went missing. We find them in the custody of the Russian mob. We usually catch them right before the mob sells them into slavery and prostitution. But we haven't' been able to prove anything yet and that's why-"

"That's why you're with me," Jack finished for her, his voice low as he looked at her. She swallowed hard, unable to stand the look of hurt and disgust in his eyes. "Right? Because you haven't been able to prove anything you came to see what I knew; or…or you were investigating me as an accomplice," he added, his jaw clenching again in anger as the implications of what she was telling him became clearer.

No, she wanted to scream. That's not why I'm here. That's why I met you, but that's not why I'm standing here barely able to breathe just because you're mad at me. That's not why this is so hard. But she couldn't say that, she had to make this a clean, cut and dry break; for both of them. "Yeah, that right," she said quietly, looking down towards the floor.

He drew in a slow, pained breath and turned away, his hands gripping the side tables till his knuckles were white. In the windows reflection she could see his jaw clench as his hangs wrung the edge of the table tightly.

"We don't have any proof yet, we know he's involved, but there's nothing we can use in court ," she plead, using his silence to try to make him see that she hadn't meant to hurt him, that she was trying to help people. "Jack….we need your testimony to-"

He gave a short humorless chuckle, "You want me to testify against my father?" he laughed again, "You want me to testify that my father, who in my entire life I have never seen so much as cheat on his taxes….You want me to claim he's involved in the mob, and put him in jail," he laughed and ran a hand over his head. His voice became humorless and cold, "My father is not involved in with Benjamin Linus," he said quietly, "…You know where the door is," he added, not turning to look at her.

Kate felt a lump form in her throat, and she tried unsuccessfully to swallow down tears, his words hit her like a brick wall, and she struggled to draw another breath so she could say something, so she could make him understand, "Jack…" she whispered, reaching her hand out.

He spun, taking her outstretched wrist in his hand tightly, the tenderness that had been in the gesture just minutes before was long gone, "Leave. Now," he said quietly, his teeth gritted angrily, his eyes betraying his feelings.

"Just please, listen to-" he cut her off by dragging her to the front door and pushing her out, slamming and dead bolting it once she was out. "Jack," she said, hitting the door, "Please, just listen to me," she yelled, frantic and rambling, not sure what she was saying, but knowing she was not ready to never see him again, and wanting him to come back, even if it was because he hated her, even if it was to yell at her; she needed him, "I know you don't believe me but its true, and we need your help. I know you hate Linus, please, I-" She was cut off by the sound of the deadbolt opening. The door opened a crack and her shirt landed on the floor in front of her, before the door was closed again and locked.

She stared sullenly at the shirt for a long moment before picking it up and putting it back on. She stared at the door for a long moment, before closing her eyes; only she could manage to ruin her personal life and the criminal case of a century in the span of five minutes. She ran a hand through her hair, and struggled to draw a normal breath before she hugged her arms tightly around herself; it suddenly seemed very cold and she shivered as she rode the elevator down to her car in the parking lot.

In the car, with no one watching, she was finally able to cry like she wanted to, and slammed her fist on the steering wheel in frustration; only she was capable of literally ruining everything.

* * *

_So, if reviews are good I'm going to keep cranking out chapters (actually writing them and also posting them) this week, cause I have a lot happening in January (get this, finals are right in the middle of the LOST premire! how unfair is that! I missed the season finale b/c of them in May ugh! -let me tell you, I'm not missing LOST for finals again lol) _

_Anyways, hope it wasn't TOO bad, and at the very least it set up some good stuff for next chapter. _

_8 reviews and chapter 8 goes up!_


	8. The Aftermath

_So sorry, life has just been so busy I havne't had any time to write this chap and it REALLY didn't want to come out. It's a long set up chap (that actually had to be split in tow-so if I get the reviews you could see the update as early as Sunday- I promise). It took seeing the new LOST to kinda kick my butt back into gear, but with that nice weekly reminder I promise I'm back in the LOST Writing saddle so to speak _

_And now without further ramblings, please enjoy this set up chapter…._

* * *

Kate brushed a stand of hair out of her face, feeling the sticky strands where they had become tangled with tears as her other hand drummed on the steering wheel waiting for the light to change colors. She cursed silently under her breath as her arm shook.

The light wasn't changing.

She drew a ragged breath, Jack's hurt and angry face flashing through her mind and she winced, unable to stop another wave of tears from trickling down her cheeks. She hissed, trying to fight them back, and glanced up.

"Damn it! Just go green already!" she swore loudly at the traffic light, hitting her steering wheel, her voice cracking in desperation. Glancing both ways quickly and seeing that she was completely alone, she sighed in irritation, and slammed her foot on the gas, speeding through the long red.

Less then 10 seconds later she heard the sound of a police siren. She swore and closed her eyes drawing a deep breath to try and compose herself, as she pulled off to the side of the road.

When the officer rapped on her window, she swore again to herself. Of all the cops to run into, it had to be Kevin-of course.

She rolled her window down quickly, wiping her eyes again, "Hey, Kev," she said, her voice cracking.

He frowned in concern, "Kate are you….?" He noticed her red eyes, "What happened?" he asked concerned, his voice authoritative but kind.

She sniffled, feeling unable to deal with her ex on top of what had happened with Jack earlier, his hurt betrayed expression running on an seemingly endless loop through her mind, "Um…No offense Kev," she gave a tiny polite laugh and matching smile through her tears, "But your really not the person I'm going to talk to about this with," she said.

Kevin sighed, the frown of concern only deepening as he squatted down next to her car, his arm resting casually on the lowered window, one eyebrow tilted as he thought of what to say next. Kate sniffled next to him as she looked out in the opposite direction, again wiping her eyes, her mind running through all of the different people she had betrayed that night; Ana and Sayid, who were depending on her skills as an agent to make Jack a valuable asset to their cause, the people of L.A who needed Ben Linus gone, and Jack, her breath hitched, she'd crushed him. Betrayed him; hurt him.

"I know we don't have the best history Kate," Kevin's soft voice broke her from her thoughts, "But I…" he sighed, "Even if we disagree on the how, all I've ever wanted is for you to be okay," he said, shooting her a meaningful glance, "If you need a friend to talk to…I can be that," he finished sincerely, and despite herself Kate gave him a small sincere smile back.

"Thanks Kev," she whispered, her voice still raw.

His face broke into a genuine and boyish smile; one that once had meant the world to her, staring at it now, Kate felt nothing; and she couldn't' help but think of the differences between his smile and Jacks. Kevin had the all American smirk that was sincere and charming and at one point had even been completely disarming. Jack, on the rare occasion he allowed him self to smile genuinely however, lit up the room, his entire face going into the smile, unafraid to show his total appreciation for whatever it was that made him happy; she had loved making him smile-she'd been good at it.

"So, what's wrong," he asked.

She sighed.

"Come on," he said, and nudged her, trying to cheer her up, "Tell me and I won't give you a ticket," he teased with a wag of his eyebrows.

Relenting, Kate sighed again exasperated, "I'm…I was…seeing this guy…Jack," she saw his jaw tighten out of the corner of her eye, but thankfully he kept quiet, "But I wasn't honest with him, "her voice cracked, "And now…" She swallowed, determine to remain composed, "I ruined it," She finished, looking at him.

He gave her a small sympathetic smile, but Kate couldn't help notice it was much more forced. He laughed slightly, "I dunno what to tell you, I'm not all that great with relationships either remember," she sighed and leaned back in her chair, looking defeated. He shifted uncomfortably, "But…if he really means a lot to you Kate…theres still a chance," he said, and she turned to him, more alert and interested in what he was saying then before, "You just need to be there for him, be a friend, be by his side. And if doing that, showing him you care still doesn't convinced him…" he smiled softly, "Then I know you probably don't want to hear this right now but you'll be better off," he said sympathetically.

She swallowed, " Thanks Kev, I just…I doubt Jack will…" she shook her head and shivered, suppressing more tears; talking about it out loud only made her betrayal feel more real.

"Wait—Jack from your office?" Kevin asked pulling a face as he thought of the small, 50 something, rotund, balding lawyer who prosecuted drug dealers from down the hall.

Kate gave a small hollow laugh, "No, Jack Shephard, he's a spinal surgeon at St. Sebastian's," she said softly. Kevin nodded.

"Well, I'm sure Jack will wise up and see what's right in front of him," Kevin said quietly, a hint of disdain making its way into his voice at Jack's name but Kate didn't notice and instead she sent him a quizzical and confused look. He elaborated, "Right in front of him is a great woman anyone would be lucky to have who simply made a mistake," he said quietly. He tapped her car window slightly, and rose to his feet. "Have a nice night ma'am," he said with a smile and salute of his hat, leaving without giving her a ticket.

* * *

Stitching closed a patient's stomach after a routine appendectomy Jack felt his jaw clench and he resisted the urge to scream out loud as Kate's face popped again into his head. Her words had been running on a loop in his brain for the last few hours and again he focused, and pushed her to the back of his mind, trying to emerge himself in the surgery.

He didn't' have to do the surgery, it was below his skill level, but it was the only thing on the board at the moment and he had needed to scrub in; needed to be able to emerge himself in something, to pull his focus off of the beautiful freckle faced brunette who had slammed into his life, made him care, then turned everything upside down and a mess. He swallowed hard as he tied the final stitch "_your fathers ties to Benjamin Linus",_ her words from earlier rang through his head, and he shook it vigorously in a vain attempt to rid the words and the entire conversation, from his brain.

A beeping noise broke him from his thoughts, "Patients having a delayed reaction to the anestisia!" a nurse said firmly, her voice high in alarm, "He's crashing!"

Jack turned back to the boy on the table; barely more then 9, and yelled for the defibulators, "Charge them," he ordered, counting in his head.

_1…_

_My names not Kate Ryan_

_2…_

_"Why would you have to…there's no reason you should have to lie to me about-"_

_"Unless I was undercover,"_

_3…_

_"Undercover to investigate what?"_

_4…._

_"-But we haven't' been able to prove anything yet and that's why-"_

_"That's why you're with me,"_

_5…_

_"You want me to testify against my father?"_

_"Jack…Just please, listen to-"_

"Doctor!" a Nurse yelled, "You need to-" Jack snapped out of his thoughts and applied the paddles to the boys chest, swearing silently under his breath.

* * *

"Where the Hell have you been!" Ana seethed as Kate closed the door to her apartment, jumping in surprise at Ana's presence in her apartment.

"What the hell are you doing in my apartment?" Kate hissed angrily.

Ana's eyes widened in shock, but without missing a beat she responded, "What am I doing? No, You don't get to ask the questions," she hissed, raising an acusing finger to Kate's face, "You spent the night, you didn't check in! For all we knew," she added, her eyes bulging angrily, "He could have realized who you were, killed you, and sent your body down the river wearing cement shoes!" she almost yelled. She rocked back, backing slightly out of Kate's face, as Kate clenched her jaw.

Ana sighed, crossing over her body and surveyed Kate for damage.

"…I'm sorry Ana," Kate said quietly, her voice breaking slightly in guilt.

Ana nodded silently, for the moment at least Kate realized Ana was in friend, not FBI Agent mode. "You okay?" she asked after a moment and Kate nodded silently, her lip trembling. "Good," Ana said curtly, the moment over, "You have a debriefing to give then. Sayid's in the other room," she added, turning on her heel towards the kitchen.

* * *

Jack waited till the other operating technicians were out of the locker room before he slammed his fist angrily into it, letting out an angry cry. They'd saved the boy, but they shouldn't have needed too. If he hadn't been distracted jack scolded himself, if he hadn't been thinking of his screwed up personal life during surgery the boy would never have crashed to begin with. He slammed his fist into the wall angrily, and rested his head against it, breathing heavily as he let himself calm down. He needed answers he realized. He swore softly; Kate may have been playing him, but her words had gotten to him; she'd gotten to him he admitted to himself, running a hand through his cropped hair in exasperation. He needed to put her ludicrous accusations behind him and to do that he needed to hear the truth. He sighed, and turned purposefully, exiting the locker and heading straight for Christian Shephards office.

* * *

_Hope that was okay. Like I said it was set up, (and Yes the Kevin scene was important) and I promise Jate will be reunited soon (though how happy of a reunion they have is still up in the air)_

_8 reviews gets you another update (and much sooner I promise)_


	9. The Ex

_I'm Glad to see response is still strong for this fic. I'll credit that to the fact LOST has been awsome and gotten more people out on the internet eager for fanfics from their favorite show lol. I'm so excited for Wednesday guys! I have a feeling it may end badly, but still angsty jate is better then no jate on the show right lol_

* * *

Jack's foot tapped impatiently against the carpet as he stared at the dark one way glass of his fathers office; his father could see him and half the hospital from inside the office, but Jack couldn't see into it. His fathers latest secretary, a young blonde named Candy, had informed him that his father was in a meeting; he'd been waiting almost forty minutes.

He ran a hand over his jaw, feeling the muscles that had clenched involuntarily in irritation. He sighed; this was important and he was sick of waiting.

Jack debated charging in, and rocked back and forth on his heal. He swore in exasperation and with a sigh, brisquely closed the distance between himself and the door.

"Doctor, you can't go in-" Candy started, but was cut off as Jack slammed the door shut behind him.

"If you don't tell him soon Christian, I -!" Mikhail hissed angrily, his voice low with fury, stopping abruptly at the sound of the door.

His fathers head shot up, his face redder from anger then the wine bottle that was sitting behind his desk. Jack frowned, unsure of what he had interrupted.

"Hello Jack," Mikhail greeted cheerfully in his thick accent as Christian took a deep calming breath, his eyes still livid and seething as he watched Mikhail walk across the room and pat Jack on the shoulder.

Jack smiled uncomfortably, he was always glad to see his godfather, but there was a thick palpable tension in the air. He shifted his weight, eyeing his father with a frown, "I hope I'm not interrupting anything important…" he offered, keeping his eyes on his fathers face, watching as he composed himself.

"No of course not my boy," Mikhail said, thumping him on the back happily. He turned back to Christian, his grin disappearing, "I was actually just leaving," he added, his tone somehow seeming to convey a threat and Christians eyes darkened, his jaw clenching.

"Yes Jack, please. Get the door for Mikhail won't you," his father ordered coolly, not bothering to look at Jack, immersed in an indignant staring contest with Mikhail.

"No need Jack," Mikhail said putting a hand on the door knob, "I can find it myself," he added, closing the door loudly behind him after one last pointed look back to Christian.

"Don't let it hit you on the way out," Christian muttered, sitting back into his chair, "What can I do for you Jack?" Christian asked after a moment, sounding weary as he turned his attention to his son.

Jack shifted his weight again, and frowned. "Dad…Is everything okay?" he asked finally.

Christian glared, "That is none of your concern Jack. Now did you have something you needed, or did you barge in here and interrupt my meeting for fun?" he challenged coolly.

Jack felt his jaw clench. He sighed and ran a hand over his head, suddenly unsure of what to say. "I…" he looked out the window towards the bustling hospital, "I've heard some rumors," he said finally, settling his gaze back on his fathers, hoping to gauge his reaction.

Christian quirked an eyebrow, seeming almost amused. "Rumors?" he repeated, a smile in his voice.

Jack nodded and took the seat across from his fathers desk when Christian motioned to it, "This is crazy, I know that Dad, but I just…I needed to hear it from you," Jack said, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. He couldn't believe he was letting Kate's words get to him; there was no way it was true. He rubbed his head, and sighed, preparing to take the dive, "I…there are some rumors floating around that you are working with Benjamin Linus dad," he said quietly, looking up towards his fathers face.

Jack watched as Christians jaw tightened, his face turning red again, "Who told you that Jack?" he asked, trying to keep control of his voice.

Jack shook his head; that wasn't the response he had expected, he gave a small laugh and shrugged, "They're just…they're just rumors dad…" Jacks frowned deepened as he watched his fathers face, and he swallowed hard seeing something akin to fear in his fathers eyes, "They're just rumors… they don't…they don't matter dad, 'cause they aren't true," he said quickly, trying to understand Christians silent rage, "They aren't true…right?" Jack finished, feeling his blood pound in his ears and he swallowed hard; for a fleeting moment suddenly afraid he had been wrong and Kate had been right.

Christian looked at him a long moment before answering, "I know you hate me Jack," Christian said, sounding sad, "But if you really think I'm capable of that…" he trailed off, sounding hurt, his eyebrows frowning together into a look of pity and betrayal.

Jack swallowed hard, suddenly feeling like he'd been punched in the gut. This was his father; even if their relationship was messed up, he knew that as a doctor, Christian Shephard would never do that, never endanger his career. He cared for his patients.

"Dad…I…" he ran a hand over his head, as his fathers hurt eyes continued to scrutinize him. Jack couldn't meet his eyes. He stood up, his face flushed in guilt, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have…" he sighed, "I should go," he said, and started moving towards the door.

Just as Jack opened it to leave Christian asked, "And Jack?"

Jack swallowed and turned back, "Yeah dad?"

His father sat at his desk, the hurt gone from his eyes, as he stared out the window towards his hospital, fingering the rim of a wine glass, "Who told you that son? Was it Mikhail?"

Jack frowned, "What? No, it wasn't…why would Mikhail say that?" Jack asked, turning fully and taking a step back towards his father's desk.

"Who was it then son?" Christian's voice was hard and demanding.

Jack sighed, not wanting to explain that he'd been played yet again by someone he'd been stupid enough to care for, "It doesn't matter dad, its not true," he said quietly with a shrug.

Christian stared at him for a long moment before nodding, "Yes…I suppose your right Jack," he said, "You can go now," he added, gesturing to the door.

Jack swallowed again, feeling horrible, and he went to the door, shutting it behind him. How many more times was he going to irrationally accuse his father of horrible crimes? How many more times was he going to hurt his father by thinking so little of him? He was his father; Jack owed him the benefit of the doubt. Jack ran a hand over his head, disgusted with himself. He had to be the biggest disappointment in the world to his father. He needed a drink.

* * *

"So let me get this straight," Ana hissed, standing over Kate in the kitchen, Sayid was standing next to the fridge, rubbing his head, "You slept with the asset, and then, as if you hadn't messed the mission up enough, you compromised it by revealing our investigation to him!" she finished, her lips pursed angrily as she seethed.

Kate bit the inside of her lip to stop a tear from running down her cheek, "I thought – "

"You didn't think," Ana interrupted angrily, "that's why we are in such a mess right now! You do you realize you potentially ruined this entire investigation! If Christian knows we are on to him…I…I don't even know what will happen!"

"Ana, please," Sayid said quietly, speaking for the first time in over an hour, "At least let Kate speak," Kate flashed him a small appreciative smile, but Sayid didn't return it, instead his face darkened into a glare, "If she ruined this investigation I at least want to know why," he looked at her sadly, "It could be that some how Jack Shephard realized who she was and paid her off to keep his father…and himself safe," he finished, watching her reaction as he said the words.

Hurt, she swallowed, "That's not why Sayid," she whispered, her voice raw, "Trust me, I'm on your side…I just, "She ran a hand through her hair and closed her eyes, trying to find the right words, "I…Jack didn't know anything. He hates Ben, if he did know, he would have reported it," Kate sighed, "I shouldn't have slept with him," she whispered sadly. Ana didn't miss the slight quiver of her lip at Jack's name and she frowned, "But he did need to know about our investigation," Kate said, looking Sayid straight in the eye, "I know Jack, if he sees something, he'll report it to the authorities-to us. And he'll be looking for something now. I put it in his head, and he won't be able to get that sort of thing out. He'll want to prove me wrong and he'll…he'll find out he was wrong," Kate affirmed, trying hard to keep her face and voice from betraying her emotions.

"You really believe that?" Sayid asked, not sounding convinced, "He could just as easily go to his father and tell him that he met a DA who claims she is investigating him," Sayid said, sounding worried, "He could have put you in great danger, because if Ben thinks you are on to him in any way that presents a real and viable threat to his operation…" Sayid sighed, "Your murder could be the next case we investigate Kate," he finished sounding concerned. "Its one thing for us to go after his hit men and take jabs at his operations, but if he thinks we can put him away, we are in a great amount of danger," Sayid finished, "The element of surprise in this investigation is the best thing we have going for us; its possibly the only thing keeping us alive."

Kate swallowed, "I know Sayid. But Jack isn't involved in his dad's activities, and if he finds something out, we'll know about, and he might be able to provide us with some concrete evidence," she elaborated, defending herself.

"He may not be willing to come forward since you slept with him Kate, "Ana said from her position leaning against the wall, "He may feel played and just stay out of it," she finished. Ana sighed, "But I do agree, it was probably time he learned of our investigation," she shot an angry glare at Kate, "I just think it could have been handled a bit better," she said pursing her lips.

Kate nodded, "I'm sorry," she shifted in her seat, "Am I…am I off the case?" she asked, turning to Sayid.

Ana sighed and answered before Sayid could, "You know the case too well, so no, you're still on the team…but you're on probation," Ana added, "And you are sure as hell off active field work," she finished, looking at Sayid, who nodded in agreement.

"You will stay at the desk for the remainder of the investigation," Sayid agreed.

"And leave the field work to my guys," Ana added angrily. She turned to Kate though and gave her a small smile, "Though 50 bucks says those two stooges find an even bigger way to mess this up," she said with a sarcastic smile.

Kate smiled softly, "I'm sure Charlie and Hurley will be fine." Ana only laughed.

* * *

"I just don't get it Mike," Kevin said, taking a long sip from his beer as the bartender scrubbed a shot glass clean, "I try to be there for her and she just…she can't see that all I ever wanted was to keep her safe…all my 'mistakes' were done to try and help her…" he laughed bitterly, "She's seeing some…doctor…now," he took another sip. "A doctor…I can't compete with that," he laughed.

"I know what you mean man," the bartender nodded sympathetically, "When my wife left…" he shook his head "…its hard to deal with," he finished with a sad smile, "She took my boy with her…Walt," he added sadly, gesturing to a picture of a small boy that was sitting near the tap.

Kevin gave him a sympathetic smile, "I just don't know how to win her back any more," he said quietly.

"Hey, how 'bou a nother ovr here," a voice slurred angrily from the bar stool next to him.

"Man, I think you've had enough," Michael said, eyeing the tall dark haired man cautiously.

The man stood up, his eyes darkening angrily, "Do you know who I am?" he hissed, "You can't cut me off," he slurred, and shoved weakly at Michaels chest. Kevin stood quickly, putting down his half empty beer bottle and put a restraining arm on the man who was a good half a foot taller then him.

"I think it's time for you to leave man," Kevin cautioned him.

The man turned to him, his jaw flexing angrily, and he blinked, "You don't want to do that," the man said angrily, his eyebrows rising.

"I think you've had enough," Kevin replied. The man ripped his arm out of Kevin's grip.

"Mind your own damn business," the man added, shoving Kevin.

Kevin sighed, "You don't want to do that man, I'm a police officer."

The man laughed, and shoved him again, "Yeah, and I'm a doctor," he said with a laugh.

Kevin felt his jaw clench; Kate's words coming into his head "He's a doctor over at St. Sebastian's." Kevin wasn't feeling too fond of doctors at the moment. The man shoved him again.

Kevin sighed, and grabbed the mans' arm twisting it behind his back. He knew the man would have over powered him if he was sober, but drunk, the man was startled and in Kevin got his hands behind his back easily.

"Mike," he said, and fished a hand into his pocket, "My cuffs are in the glove compartment," he said, throwing the keys to Michael. "And you, sir, are under arrest for the arrest of a police officer," he said, proceeding to read the Miranda rights when Michael returned with the cuffs.

He shoved the tall man into the back seat of the cruiser and slammed the door shut.

"Was that really necessary Kev.?" Michael asked him after the door was shut.

Kevin smiled, "Legally, yes." He laughed, "I warned him I was a police officer and he shoved me. Technically, that's assault," Kevin shrugged. Michael looked unconvinced, and Kevin sighed, "Don't worry, he'll probably just get a fine, maybe some community service hours. But at the very least he'll sober up in a jail cell. Might teach him a thing or two."

Michael sighed and nodded, "If you're sure man, just let me go get his wallet, it was on the counter when you brought him out," he said running back into the bar to grab it.

Michael came back out and Kevin took the small leather wallet from him and put it on the seat next to him and pulled out of the parking lot.

Sitting in traffic ten minutes later he picked it back up, "So who are you anyways," he muttered and opened the wallet, his eyes going wide.

He glanced back in the mirror at the man who was now looking sullenly out the window of the cruiser, dark bags under his eyes.

"Jack Shephard huh," he chuckled. "Guess today didn't suck that much after all," he added under his breath with a smile.

* * *

Kate ran a hand through her hais as she sat on the couch. Sayid had left over an hour ago, and Ana was sitting across from her silently, nursing a beer and a slice of pizza as they watched the tv silently.

Ana sighed, "Do you want to talk about it?" she asked quietly, not turning to look at Kate.

"Talk about what?" Kate asked hollowly.

Ana huffed and rolled her eyes, turning to look at Kate, "About Jack," she said, sending Kate a knowing look.

Kate looked down, pulled at the hem of her shirt and shook her head, "There's nothing to talk about Ana," she said quietly.

Ana rolled her eyes again, "I'm asking as a friend, not because of the case," she said in a gentler voice.

Kate swallowed, forcing the memories of her night with Jack from her mind, "I know Ana, and I appreciate it, but there's still nothing to talk about."

Ana got to her feet angrily, "You are the worst liar I have ever met Kate," she saw Kate about to protest and held up her hands sarcastically in defeat, "But fine, if you say so, there's nothign to talk about," she mimiced, moving towards the door. "But I'll be here when you're ready to admit you were falling for him," she added closing the door behind her.

Kate sighed and sat back on the couch, hugging her arms around herself tightly, "I think I'm a little past 'falling' Ana," she whispered emptily.

* * *

_Hope that last line worked...I can never tell these things..._

_Anyways, I know that was a little slow, but hopefully it was good in a "set up some good jate to come" kind of way. And also furthered the plot a bit. _

_Sorry to any and all who fell in love with Kevin last chapter. My intention wasn't to make him the good guy. I tried to hint that he was still a bit jealous in the last chap. Though for the record he didnt' arrest Jack just because it was Jack-If I'm not mistaken Kevin did have full legal rights to arrest Jack simply for shoving him. Maybe I'm taking that right for police officers out of context somehow-oh well, its fiction, we'll role with it lol_

_8 reviews and you get an update!_


	10. The Cell

_Yay. Okay, a V day update. Its mildly angsty and it's a jate reunion. _

_Hmm…Im curious what you all think of the pacing of this story. Is it too slow? I know its not nearly as fast paced as Redemption, but then again I didn't have to build the Jate relationship from the ground up in that fic. I do promise that it is going to start getting a little faster, but I hope you guys are enjoying the more methodical/detailed chapters I think I'm delivering in this story. Would love to hear what you guys think!_

* * *

Kate woke up to the sound of her phone ringing. She rolled over and groaned; it was only 3 in the morning. She frowned when she saw the called I.D; why on earth would Kevin be calling her?

"Hello?" she answered groggily, sitting up in bed, and pushing her messy hair out of her face.

"Hey Kate, sorry to wake you," Kevin's voice was loud, and the yelling in the background caused Kate to pull the phone away from her ear; apparently he was at the office.

"Is everything okay? Why are you…" Kate struggled to form the words, still half asleep.

"I uh…we picked up someone down here you may want to come pick up Kate," he said softly.

She rubbed her eyes tiredly, struggling to keep them open, "What…What are you talking about…?" she muttered groggily.

"We picked up Jack Shephard," he clarified, and Kate didn't miss the slight bitterness that crept into his voice at the name.

Her heart stopped as she shot up, finally awake, "Is he okay?" she asked quickly, her voice wavering slightly fearfully.

Kevin sighed, "Yeah…he's…" he grunted, "He's great. He's just too drunk to use the phone Kate," Kevin said accusingly.

Kate swallowed, and closed her eyes. Back when Jack had trusted her, she felt her throat tighten; he'd told her his dad was a heavy drinker. Even on their first date, he'd only had one glass of wine and water the rest of the time. He'd told her he was afraid to drink; hated how it made him feel like his father. She didn't know what would make Jack run to the bottle, but whatever it was would have to be big. She should have been there for him, she scolded herself, the guilt hitting her like a truck, a tear making its way silently down her cheek. Kevin's voice brought her back to reality; she still could be there for him she remembered, she could still show him she cared. "I'll be right down," she said quietly, preparing to hang up as she flung the covers off her bed.

"Really Kate?" Kevin challenged, and Kate sighed; she'd been afraid he wouldn't let it go, "You break up with me for passing out drunk in our own living room, but you think it's a good idea to date a alcoholic surgeon!" he hissed accusingly. "I mean…. after everything you told me about your home life," he added, his tone gentler.

Kate's jaw clenched, "For one Kev. The reason things ended between us is because you accepted a pay off," she said angrily as she flung open her closet door looking for something clean to wear.

"I did that to keep you-" Kevin started.

"I don't care why you did it!" she snapped, "You compromised everything I have spent my entire life fighting against. You compromised everything you spend every day fighting against. That's why we're over, and that has nothing to do with Jack," she hissed. "So you can mind your own damn business, and you don't get to hold my childhood over my head. And you sure as hell don't get to judge Jack right now," she added defensively, her chest tightening with guilt again as she thought of what she had put Jack through.

Kevin was silent for a long moment, "He's been asking for you," he said quietly before hanging up. Kate closed her eyes and let out a breath as she pulled the phone from her ear and threw it onto the bed.

She put her head tiredly against the door of her closet and let out a ragged breath. He'd asked for her, Kevin's words rang in her head and despite herself she felt her stomach do a little summer salt in excitement. She shook her head, pushing thoughts of her night with him from her mind. No matter what, even if he did forgive her….she felt more tears leak out from her tightly shut eyes. "He won't forgive me though," she whispered quietly to herself, her voice cracking on the words, trying to douse the spark of hope Kevin's words had ignited. Pulling on a hoodie and sweats she tried one last time to pull herself together before giving up and getting in her car.

**Later: L.A.P.D County holding Area:**

"Where is he? Where's Jack?" she asked breathlessly as she approached Kevin. He sighed and looked away, still upset by their phone conversation.

"Over here," Kevin muttered, walking towards the individual holding cells. Kate's breath caught in her throat as she saw him, his head resting his hands, his back arched defensively. He looked tired. His head shot up when he heard their approaching footsteps, and after a moment of shock, a glare came over his face as they settled on Kate. She swallowed hard, feeling vulnerable and guilty under his piercing gaze. "He's sobered up some since I called," Kevin warned, opening the door, "Since you paid his bail, he's free to go," Kevin said walking away angrily.

Kate entered the cell tentatively, and Jack sat back in the cell, crossing his arms over his chest as he surveyed her, his jaw clenched. "You okay?" she asked quietly.

He nodded, "Yeah….," he licked his lips his brow furrowing together, "You?" he asked finally, surprising her.

She nodded, biting her lip slightly to keep tears at bay. He stayed silent and she shifted on her feet, fiddling with the hem of her worn hoodie, suddenly wishing shed dressed a little bit nicer. "Why…um…Kevin said you were asking for me earlier…" She finally admitted, her voice wavering, trying not to let the hope and curiosity show through in the question.

He chuckled slightly and nodded, "Yeah," he ran a hand over his head, "I asked my dad about what you said," he admitted quietly, looking up at her from under his dark brow gauging her reaction.

She swallowed hard, "That's why you were drinking? He told you?" she said quietly, guilt ripping through her again.

His glare intensified, "No. He didn't tell me anything because he's innocent," he said coldly. He rose to his feet and moved closer, Kate felt her back press against the cell bars as he towered over her, his breathing heavy in his anger as he fumed. Electricity shot through her, every inch of his body hovered almost touching hers. He was so tall his breath, tinged with alcohol hit her face, and she definitely she looked up at him, determined to keep calm. Despite the memories the smell of his breath brought, and the slight involuntary shiver it caused, Kate was struck by a sudden feeling of safety. He was safe. He would never hurt her in anyway if he could help it; not like she had him she thought with another stab of guilt. A humorless smile spread across his face, as he looked down at her and he shook his head slightly. "I don't know what it was about you Kate…or whoever you are," she flinched, "But I'll admit…you got to me somehow," he chuckled bitterly again, "And you used what I'd told you about my dad against me. I don't know why but you did," he said sadly. She closed her eyes.

"Jack, I'm telling you the truth, your father-"she tried.

"Is one of the top surgeons in this country and a great man," Jack said angrily, lowering himself to her eye level. "He built himself up from nothing into one of the worlds finest surgeons. I am so lucky to have had him there to pay for medical school, to have helped me through all those things. 'Cause I'm not like him. I don't have what it takes to do it alone, he's the reason I am where I am today," he shook his head again, his mind flashing back to the many times he had heard those words spoken to him," Medicine is his entire life," his voice cracked as he thought of all the missed birthdays and piano recitals, and he shoved the thoughts away feeling guilty, "He wouldn't do it." He finished hoarsely.

Kate felt a lump grow in her throat and she reached out tentatively, taking Jacks hand in one of hers, the other reached up to his face, forcing him to look at her. He flinched at her touch in anger, but didn't try to pull away. "Yes he would Jack," she whispered sadly. He closed his eyes a moment, enjoying her closeness more then he knew he should've been, but unable to fight how right it felt to have her hand on his.

He drew a ragged breath and shook his head slightly, "No," he whispered, his eyes still closed. She watched a single tear find its way out of his eye and down his cheek as he shook his head, "He wouldn't," he finished his voice raw from the effort of controlling his emotions. She looked at him sadly. He chuckled hollowly again before he managed to pull himself from her arms. He licked his lip tentatively.

He looked towards the bleak cell wall, "You should be so easy to get over," he whispered sadly, and Kate grimaced, feeling her breathing stop. "But you're not," he finished looking back to her sadly his brow furrowed adorably. Kate felt a small tear role down her cheek.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, and shifted again, hugging herself, "You're not either," she admitted quietly.

He laughed, almost seeming genuinely amused, and Kate cringed. He would never believe her or forgive she realized sadly. You don't deserve either Kate, her mind screamed. "I know you think it was an act Jack," she said quietly, "and I know I haven't given you any reason to believe otherwise…but it wasn't. Not for a minute. I promise," she affirmed, her voice wavering.

He held her gaze for a long moment, and sighed, running a hand through his hair. Seeing the tears in her eyes, and the defensive way she held her arms around herself made it hard to breathe, and his chest hurt. He clenched his jaw, trying hard to fight the urge to put his arms around her. To make it better; to fix it for her. He shook his head slightly, "Thanks," he offered quietly, unable to bring himself to hold her even though he was dying to.

She smiled weakly, "Do you ah…do you need a ride home?" she asked tentatively.

Jack shook his head, "No I .."

"Actually, he does," Kevin said cheerfully, appearing in front of the cell startling them both.

"What?" Jack asked frowning.

Kevin smiled, "Your license is suspended because of your arrest," he shrugged.

"I was drunk but I wasn't driving," Jack fumed, moving towards Kevin, who just held up his hands.

"I didn't make the law," he casually shrugged. Jack sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose before turning to Kate.

"Um…" He started shifting slightly.

Kate nodded, feeling her heart flutter, "Of course," she said not needing him to continue. "My cars out front, I'll be out in a minute okay?" she added giving him a small smile.

"Thank you," he offered sincerely before walking out of the cell.

Kate watched him leave before turning to Kevin. "If he wasn't driving, he should have his license Kev. Just because you don't like him you don't get-" She started angrily.

"Here," he said, sticking a small card out to Kate, "Take it," he offered.

Reaching her hand out tentatively, she blinked in surprise, "Why are you giving me Jacks license?" she asked suspiciously.

Kevin sighed, "Look…You were right earlier. I was out of line on the phone," he sighed, "Who you date is none of my business. If this guy makes you happy…" he waved his hand. She cocked an eyebrow still confused, "You said you guys were having a rough time, I figured ya know, I accidently lost his file already so there's no case against him but he doesn't know that," he shifted on his feet, "Bring his license to him in a day or two, say you took care of his arrest. He'll be grateful and…" he shrugged, "Just consider it my olive branch okay?" he added with a smile.

"Thank you Kev." She said sincerely, putting her license in her pocket. She stood next to him for a moment unsure of what to say, "I uh…Jacks waiting," she gestured towards the parking lot and started out of the holding cell.

He caught her wrist. "And when you're ready to admit you and I should be together, I'll be right here," he added.

She closed her eyes in exasperation, "Kevin. It's over between us. It's been over between us. I appreciate what you're doing for me but…" she shook her head, "I'm sorry," she added, pulling her wrist free.

Kevin sighed, "IN nearly 15 years on the force I've never seen a blood alchohal level as high as his Kate. At least not on anyone I haven't had to call a body bag for. This isn't the first time he's hit the bottle Kate. You have to hit it pretty damn hard to get a number that high and live to brag. It takes a lot of practice and a damn good gene pool. So I'll be right here Kate when you realize what you're doing. Have a nice night," he added angrily, leaving her.

Kate closed her eyes to stop more tears, more confused then before as to why Jack was drinking; she needed to talk to him about that. She shivered, he could hate her all he wanted, but she wouldn't let him do that to himself. He was too good to become like his father; like her father.

Kate shook her head and watched as Kevin returned to his desk. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair; unsure of what else she could say to Kevin to make her feelings about him-or lack thereof-any clearer. She turned her head towards the parking lot and sighed again. She didn't know what to say to Jack either-and that was going to be harder, because she knew she did have to find a way to make her feelings clearer to him. She just didn't think he'd believe her.

* * *

_Yay! Jate conversation in the next chapter. And thank gosh ! no more Kevin for a few chaps. I was getting sick of writing him lol (and don't worry, Kate is never going back to Kevin I will tell you that right now-I think we have enough mainstream problems with geometic shapes don't you guys lol)_

_Next chap: I think its going to be my stories Flash back chapter. The flashes were alluded to here in this chap, so if you can figure it out....feel free to speculate, love to hear what you think. (i think you'll be able to figure it out lol)_

_8 reviews and you know what happens-and thank you guys, the response to this fic has been stellar (though, please if i'm on your story alert and you aren't reviewing, drop me a review, I love to hear from new and old fans of this fic alike!)_


	11. The Before

_Review count dropped a bit. -its really low compared to the number of people who have this story on alert. I'd love to hear from you guys too!_

_Hope people enjoy this chapter...._

* * *

Jack leaned against the hood of Kate's car, arms folded across his chest. He sighed. He shouldn't be doing this he decided. He shouldn't be taking a ride form someone who wanted to imprison his father for crimes he hadn't even committed. "This is a bad idea," he muttered again, furious with himself for even entertaining putting a woman he had just met above his father. He pushed off the hood of the car; it was only a ten minute walk to the bar. Or was it? He scratched his head trying to shift through the fog of alcohol. Where had he gone for a drink again? He groaned. It didn't matter he decided with a shake of his head, he shouldn't be taking a ride home from Kate Austen no matter the circumstances. He took another step in what he thought was the direction of the bar.

"Where are you going?" Kate's curious voice asked, piercing the silence. He froze, remembering why he'd wanted to badly to take the ride to begin with; everything about her was intoxicating, her voice, her smile…. Swallowing hard he turned around to look at her. She was frowning, head cocked slightly to the side, her eyebrows furrowed and her eyes filled with concern for him; what looked like concern he reminded himself. She was one hell of an actress.

He swayed unsteadily as he pondered what to say to her. It had been much easier to fight with her sitting down he realized. She was at his side in a second, helping keep him upright. He blinked in surprise as he felt the familiar warmth of her hands on his arm. She steered him towards the passenger door and Jack felt powerless to stop her. A small traitorous part of his brain didn't want to stop her.

"Thanks," he muttered as she backed out of the parking lot a second later. She gave him another smile.

The car ride was silent. He watched her out of the corner of his eye the entire way. She was chewing her bottom lip nervously, her eyes darting to him every few moments. She opened her mouth to speak more then once but seemed to think better of it. As they pulled up in the parking lot of his apartment complex Jack groaned again; the elevator was broken. Kate followed his line of sight and silently pulled into a parking spot.

Jack started to get out. He could make it up four flights of stairs on his own.

"Jack," Kate challenged, seeing him trying the stairs, her head again titled in concern.

"I can walk up a couple stairs Kate," he retorted gruffly. With a sigh she was again at his side, putting an arm under his, helping him up. He felt his jaw clench; she shouldn't be there his mind whispered; but he wanted her there. Badly.

He blinked in surprise as they approached his room. Jack frowned, "I can't find my keys," he finally said, looking over at her.

She smiled, and looked up at him, her bright green eyes sparkling slightly in amusement, "That's because you forgot them Jack. One of the policemen gave them to me after you walked out," she said, flashing the key at him before swiftly unlocking his door.

"Oh," he said quietly, allowing her to help him in. She deposited him on the couch and walked into his kitchen, coming back moments later with coffee.

He nodded his appreciation as he sank back into the couch. It was nice to be home after spending hours in that holding cell. He nursed the hot cup of coffee silently, surprised when Kate sat down across from him, her legs tucked under her as she stared out the window at the city lights.

They sat in silence for a long time, neither sure of what to say, "Why were you drinking Jack?" she finally asked, her voice quivering, fearing the answer.

Jack closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose irritated. She wanted to give him a morality lecture on drinking. He set his cup down on the coffee table.

"It doesn't matter," he sighed, sitting back.

Her head whipped towards him, "Yes it does," she said calmly, her eyes teary.

"Why?" he asked humorlessly. She opened her mouth to speak but snapped it shut. Jack clenched his jaw. "You think I'm going to tell you ANYTHING?" he hissed. Kate blinked in surprise, surprising tears. "I told you plenty about myself already Kate," he gave a short humorless chuckle, "Was anything you ever said true?" he challenged, anger at her betrayal hitting him in fresh waves.

She flinched but nodded, "Yes, some of it was…. Most of it actually," she said, averting her eyes, her legs coming up in front of her defensively. She wrapped her arms around herself, almost holding herself together.

Jack swallowed and shifted towards her, his face inches from hers. He could smell the slight trace of perfume from whatever she had worn to work that day, which mixed so well with her shampoo; he'd fallen in love with that smell instantly, almost as quickly as he'd fallen- no-he clenched his jaw, and let out a deep ragged breath, "Give me something real. Just this once," he plead, and swallowed hard at the terrified look in her eyes.

She closed her eyes, breaking eye contact and let out a breath, "I wasn't lying when I said my mom's name was Diane…but she's…she isn't traveling the world with her husband…she's… dead...,"she swallowed, "Cancer," she explained quietly, her eyes still closed. She owed him these truths, she knew she did.

He pulled back slightly in surprise, but his hand went to hers in support reflexively, "I'm sorry," he said quietly.

She smiled, but her lips quivered. She kept her eyes closed, "Me too," she admitted. "I….Sam was my…Sam was my dad in every sense of the word…except the one that mattered, "she admitted, opening her eyes again.

It was Jack's turn to cock his head in confusion, his eyebrows knitting together adorably. She smiled, "He wasn't my biological dad. I thought…they told me he was, but he wasn't. I found that out when they divorced when I was ten," she stopped before he could ask, "No, he isn't traveling the world alone, or with my mom since retirement like I told you," she said sadly. She paused a long moment and pulled her arms around herself tighter, "My mom remarried when I was twelve. To my real dad," she whispered, "To Wayne," she added, her voice trembling slightly as she said the name. She felt his callous hand tighten instinctively around hers, and blinked back tears.

_Kate slammed the door behind her. "Stay out!" Wayne's voice screeched, and she flinched as she heard a bottle hit the door and shatter against the door she had just closed. She pushed the palm of her hand against her eye; she was 17; too old to cry. She took a deep breath and headed down the walk way; she was going to buy a scooter one of these days she swore to herself for the hundredth time; she needed a way to get out of there quicker._

_Once she wiped away the one traitorous tear that had found its way onto her cheek she looked up and froze. Well within earshot of her house was a smoking car, the hood popped as a man waved his hand frantically in front of his face, trying to keep the fumes out as he coughed. When he made eye contact with her he smiled awkwardly confirming Kate's suspicion; he'd heard._

_"Um, excuse me miss," he hollered, waving her towards him. She approached the car standing well out of reach, despite his friendly smile. "I uh….my car broke down," he said uncomfortably. "You don't have a phone I can borrow do you?" he asked tentatively, wincing as another bottle smashed through a window. Kate frowned._

_"Yeah, we have one in there," she said gesturing to her house, she turned back to the man and quirked an eyebrow, "You wanna go get it?" she asked, her voice cracking despite her smile. He offered her a small smile for the effort and with a sigh he sat down on the curb a few feet from her._

_"This is what I get for buying a rental car from someone named Frogurt huh?" he joked lamely, pointing to his smoking engine. Kate smiled, and stood up._

_"Frogurt huh?" the man nodded. "Frogurt holds all his cars together the same way," Kate said with a small smile, tugging on the hem of her shirt. She stuck her arm under the hood, and fished around, smiling again when she found what she was looking for._

_She showed the man the clothes pin and he laughed, "All the cars have one of these 'cause he's too cheap to fix them properly," she laughed, "Just reattach it and you'll be good to go," she said, fixing it for him, and wiping her hands on her jeans, "They usually stay in there pretty well but sometimes potholes and stuff shake 'um lose," she said as the man raised his eyes skyward in relief._

_"Thank you," he said sounding relieved, "I was so worried I was going to be late with my meeting with my client," he said with a sigh of relief. For the first time Kate took a moment to survey the man. He wasn't short or tall, a little over weight, old enough that his grayish blonde hair was staring to thin, and very overdressed to be out on these old country roads; a lawyer. He gave her another kindly smile. "I'm Bernard by the way," he added, sticking out his hand._

_Kate smiled and extended her own, "Kate. Are you the lawyer for the Union workers striking down at the mill?" she asked. Bernard nodded._

_"I'm here to represent the average man," he laughed. Another scream came from behind them. Kate felt her face flush in embarrassment and Bernard shifted awkwardly. "Look ah…its none of my business but," Kate shot him a look of agreement and he sighed, and shifted his hand to his pocket pulling out a card, "Here." He said offering it to her, she took it with a questioning look, "I'm in town for a few weeks for this trial. My partner and I have side by side rooms, but he met a girl and is staying with her," Bernard explained uncomfortably, "if things ever…if they get too bad, and you don't have anywhere else…you can find me at the only hotel on main street okay?" he said kindly, giving her a smile. Kate blinked, humiliated and touched at the same time._

_She swallowed, "Thank but…I've been doing this for a while. I'll be fine," she said, trying to hand him the card back. He shook his head and held up a hand._

_"If you don't need a room, I'm available for legal consult too," he said seriously getting into his car, "Thank you for your help Kate," he added, casting one last look at her house, "Take care of yourself," he said giving her a fatherly look that was unsettlingly similar to Sam's._

_Watching his car kick up dust as he went Kate swore to herself as she remembered; Tom was out of town. She actually didn't have anywhere to stay that night._

Kate smiled at the memory, and turned her attention back to Jack, away from the window and the city lights, "I spent the night in the spare room and in the morning he casually left these minor emancipation papers under my door. When I asked him about them," she smiled, "He told me he didn't know how they got there but he'd explain the concept to me if I wanted," Jack looked away, his jaw clenched in anger towards her family. Despite everything Kate had already put him through in their short orchestrated time together, he felt the over powering urge to wrap his arms around her as she shivered. His hand squeezed hers again, and she offered him a soft smile as a tear spilled over her cheek. His brow furrowed in concern and he lifted his free hand up, gently brushing it away with his thumb. Her hand came up to his on her cheek holding it there softly, rubbing circles over the back of his hand with her thumb, her eyes closing instinctively at his touch. "Bernard said he could get me emancipated, but I didn't want to leave my mom alone with him for good," she whispered with a small laugh, "So he fought through the small town "good ol' boy system" and got Wayne put away. Wayne did 7 years," she smiled happily at the memory and shrugged. "Mom would have waited for him," she added, her smile replaced instantly with a frown, "But she didn't make it, 5 years into his sentence, the cancer just…it was too much" she licked her lip, tasting salty tears there.

"I'm sorry," he whispered sincerely, his voice raw.

Kate nodded a thanks, her voice weak as she tried to compose herself, taking a deep breath she added, "I…without him…I don't know where I would be right now. I wouldn't have been able to take it much longer Jack; I know that. Bernard's the reason I went into law. I started out wanting to work the front lines, but when I got sidelined… I went back, took the bar and… I started helping kids…like Bernard had helped me," she finished quietly. Jack was looking at her intently, seeming to have sobered up.

"Thank you," he said sincerely, his voice low and tight with emotion, "for telling me the truth about you just now," he explained. He shifted uncomfortably, pulling his hands away from her. "How…a…how did you go from helping kids to working on the Linus case?" Jack asked, afraid to bring up the topic, but feeling drawn to her, not only wanting but needing to know more about her.

Kate swallowed hard, "Ben's daughter…Alex. She…" Kate blinked back tears, "She was a good kid. She realized what her dad was involved in and hated it, wanted out; wanted protection," Kate ran a hand through her hair, composing herself, "We couldn't give it to her. A rival of Bens…he hired a mercenary team, lead by a guy named Keamy and they…they killed her and her boyfriend… in retaliation for some stupid drug deal Ben had screwed them over on," Kate shivered. "I started working with Sayid, giving him what I knew about Alex's case to help his investigation into Ben and the mob, and I just…her father put her in danger, his line of work, his selfishness, everything, it made her a target," Kate's jaw clenched, and she looked at Jack, "I saw everything else Ben was responsible as I worked with Sayid, and he offered me a job to work on his team on the case. My dream is to help kids but… I'm staying on this case, staying with the DA until Ben gets brought in. That son of a bitch needs to be brought down Jack," her voice quivered, "And I am so sorry that you're a part of this," she whispered.

Jack shook his head, "Kate," he blinked back a tears of his own, taken aback by how affect he was seeing her this upset, "I will help you anyway I can, but my father, he's not who you think he is," Jack said calmly.

"Yes he is," she whispered, "And I'm sorry I have to tell you that but it's the truth," she added as he stood up, running an agitated hand through his hair.

"How many times are we going to have this same fight Kate?" Jack said, his voice getting louder. "My father is the chief of surgery at St. Sebastian's," he laughed, "Not some…mafia hit man," he shook his head, his jaw still clenched. He looked at her pleadingly, "Please, just let this go. It's not true; you're chasing a bad lead and wasting time."

_"Some kids were beating up Marc Silverman huh?" Christian asked sounding board. He sent Jack a pitying look as he surveyed his sons' black eye. He sighed, "This is worse then last time son," he said, licking his lip, "What did I tell you then Jack?"_

_Jack scuffed his feet on the ground, his vision blurring in his right eye, "You told me not to choose. That I need to let things go," he recited._

_Christian smiled and opened his mouth, Jack felt his heart race, his dad seemed happy with his response, "So you were listening to me?" he droned, his eyebrows raised in a mix of amusement and disappointment._

_Jack swallowed, "Yes dad," he answered quietly._

_Christian nodded approvingly, "You know," he swirled the glass of scotch he had poured himself, "My old man was a real piece of work Jack," he laughed, "We didn't have a lot growing up. But because I had what it took, and because I listened to him, I managed to make myself up into a successful man today, I'm able to provide for my family," he said nodding to his study, "So we can have this nice house, so you can have all those nice things you have," he added, raising his eyebrow at Jack, "So that one day, you'll be able to go to medical school and not have to worry at all about the bills and student loans coming out of it. You'll be able to focus exclusively on your career," Christian smiled and ruffed his son's hair affectionately. "I didn't have anything Jack," he said again, looking out over the city, seemingly lost in thought, "On my own, I made myself from nothing…" he took a sip of his scotch, "You don't have what it takes to do that," he said, "So you're just going to have to listen to me," he turned his attention back to Jack, "So when I say to let it go, and to not choose, you need to listen to me son," he smiled and patted Jack's good cheek, "Okay?" he asked, and Jack nodded quietly, his head hung embarrassed that he had messed up yet again, Christian smiled," Good, now go play kiddo" he said, patting Jacks arm. He swirled his scotch as Jack prepared to close the door to his fathers study, "Oh and Jack," he called._

_Jack turned back to his father, "Yes dad?" he shifted on his feet nervously._

_"Since you got in a fight you know the rule; you can play the piano, but you're going to bed without supper," he said sadly, sounding disappointed._

_Jack's face fell, but he nodded, "I know dad," he said quietly. Christian smiled, "Alright then, just close my door now kiddo," he said, gesturing and Jack nodded, closing it as he left._

Jack shook his head, "My father built himself from the ground up Kate, and he has spent his entire life saving lives. He doesn't work for Linus," Jack calmly, reaching for the apartment door. Kate swallowed hard, knowing what was coming; he was about to make her leave again.

"Then prove me wrong," Kate challenged, and Jack froze.

"I don't need to, I know the truth, you won't find anything on my father because he hasn't done anything," he said emphasizing every word, his eyebrows raised in exasperation.

"Then have lunch with me tomorrow. I'll show you what we have, why I think what I think about your dad. You can see what we have, and refute it, "Her voice waivered, "Prove me wrong Jack. I want to be wrong about this so badly," she whispered pleadingly as he shook his head.

"Kate I-" Jack started.

"Please," she whispered, looking him in the eye.

He held her gaze for a long time, his hand on the door knob until he finally relented. He wanted to prove her wrong. He clenched his jaw; he wanted them to move past this. He would show her, his father had what it took. He was a self made man, an honest surgeon at the very least, even if his personal relationships were messed up. "Okay," he agreed, "Tomorrow, lunch." He agreed.

Kate smiled, "Thank you Jack," she whispered, holding back tears of relief. She smiled brightly, "I'll see you tomorrow then, at that new little café near the hospital, The 815," she said. He gave her a weak smile and a nod as she exited his apartment.

"Goodnight Jack," she said, flashing him a smile.

Jack couldn't help but smile back, "Goodnight; I'll see you tomorrow Kate," he added.

* * *

_I REALLY hope those flashbacks worked. Im kinda nervous about them..._

_Enjoy, and I hope to have chapter 12 up soon too. I was just reworkign minor plot details down the line, and given how long this is working itself up I ended up just rewriting the outline. Some cool stuff is coming (in case your losing interest at the moment)_

_Anyways, reguardless, since I know you guys can review, Im gonna up the ante:_

_**10** reviews gets you an update._


	12. The Tail

_I am SO SO sorry guys. I've been feelign guilty about this all week and part of the weekend. I had this written by SUnday morning, but this is the first time that has let me log in, there was some technical error. I don't know how wide spread it was, but I couldn't for the life of me get in. So, I had this all written to put up like 24 horus after my last update because you guys were above and beyond on the reviews which i appriciate SO much. So thank you for that, and I'm sorry you had to wait so long, it was not my intent._

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Jack groaned and leaned his head against the counter of the nurse's station; his head pounded.

"Late night?" Rose asked disapprovingly, noticing the bags under his eyes. Jack rubbed his head and glared back at her. Rose sighed and shifted uncomfortably before asking" You drinking again?" in a hushed tone, laced with concern.

Jack sighed, "It was one night Rose," She didn't look convinced, "Don't worry," he added with a reassuring smile as he ran a hand over his head.

Her shoulders sagged as she made a face, "Jack…things were going so well…I mean, that's why you took your sabbatical wasn't it? To clear your head, take a break and recover from your divorce? You seemed so happy," She pressed sadly, "What happened?"

Jack shook his head, "Nothing happened…I just had a bad day," he said quietly, trying to control his voice. Rose opened her mouth to argue, "Its nothing Rose, just let it go okay," he plead, picking up a chart and heading to do rounds.

**Later:**

Jack threw his gloves into the garbage, frusterated after the 6 hour surgery. He looked at the clock; he still had two hours before he was supposed to meet Kate.

_Jack groaned as he walked into his kitchen and winced as the sunlight seeping through the blinds hit his eyes. After his late night, waking up had been difficult; his massive hangover hadn't helped. Going over to his coffee machine he frowned as his hand landed on a card. Picking it up he blinked in surprise; it was his driver's license. He glanced back down and saw a scrap of paper._

_Jack-_

_After you left they agreed to not press charges. Here's your license. Be safe._

_-Kate_

_He smiled and tucked the license into the pocket of his sweat pants. How was it that Kate had already managed to make his day better? Still smiling he went to change while he waited for the coffee to become ready._

He smiled at the memory. He jumped at the sound of his pager; glancing down he sighed before breaking into a run. They need him down in trauma.

"What do we have?" Jack hollered over the screams around him as he took the gloves the nurse Colleen offered him.

"Girl, age 10, named Emma, her mom ran a red light and got hit from the side," The EMT said automatically meeting Jack with the girl's stretcher half way across the room.

"My baby!" Jack heard the girls mother shriek as she collapsed into Colleen's arms. "Oh god…I was just late to pick up her brother…Zach…he still at school and…" she whispered.

"Colleen, make sure Emma's mom isn't going into shock on us," Jack warned as he worked furiously to stabilize the girl. He breathed a sigh of relief as he saw her breathing and heart rate return to normal. Taking his gloves off he fan a hand over his head. He needed to run some tests, but Emma was almost certainly going to need surgery. He watched as Colleen took the girl to another room; again checking the clock. Still over an hour. He sighed irritated.

"Jack," Rose called to him from across the room, waving him over.

"Yes Rose," He asked as he approached, hoping she had let their earlier conversation drop.

Rose shifted nervously, "Your dad wants to see you Jack," she paused, "Seems he heard about your arrest last night," she challenged, looking at him with an eyebrow raised in disappointment.

He sighed, irritated, "It's not as bad as it sounds Rose, "he argued as she followed him towards the elevator.

He stepped into the elevator and Rose stuck her hand in keeping it from closing. "Jack, last time I was stupid. I closed my eyes and hoped your problem would go away. And I thought your sabbatical had helped. I understand that your divorce was hard and lord knows I know Sarah was a bitch, but now?," she sighed, "You're not your father Jack," she reminded him with a warm maternal smile.

Jack swallowed, "I know Rose. And I promise, it was a one time thing," he assured her quietly and she let the elevator close.

Christian was waiting for him when he entered the office. His face was contorted din a vain effort to mask his fury. Christian gestured for Jack to close the door before rising from his chair.

"What were you thinking Jack!" Christian hissed his eyes wide. "Drunk and disorderly conduct and assault on a police officer?" Christian shook his head in disbelief.

Jack clenched his jaw, refraining from an argument, "The charges have been dropped," he said icily, turning towards the window.

Christian deflated slightly, "Son… Its not about the charges," Jack turned to look at him, surprised by his concern, "If the press heard that one of the top surgeons in the state-the top one in this hospital was out getting arrested while intoxicated, we would have a media crisis to deal with, " he explained trying to put his hand on Jacks shoulder. Jack took a step back, shaking his head angrily.

"I don't need a lecture on drinking from you of all people," He retorted unable to stop himself.

Christian pulled his hand back looking hurt, "I _was_ going to AA remember Jack?" he said sadly, the underlying accusation not lost on Jack.

Jack took a deep breath, clenching his jaw before he opened to respond; Colleen opened the door.

"Oh…sorry to interrupt…" she said, offering an apologetic smile. Jack turned to look at her, offering a small smile of reassurance in return.

"Its fine, we were finished anyways, "Jack said, ignoring the look his father flashed him, "Is this about our trauma patient?" he asked walking towards her expecting test results.

"Sort of…I came to tell the chief that the mother doesn't have insurance…or a social security number," Colleen said, staring intently at Christian, who bristled at her words. Christian ran a hand over his face.

"If you could excuse me a minute Jack, I need to make a call," he said sadly. Jack nodded his understanding; having to report someone without insurance or social security wasn't easy. He didn't envy the job of chief of medicine, no matter how much his father wanted him to be his replacement one day. Jack frowned when Colleen didn't make a move to leave the office either and frowned; Christian waved him out.

Jack sighed and walked back to the elevator. His forehead pulled together in confusion as he thought about his father's response to Colleen. It seemed off somehow….He shook his head, unable to place it and shrugged it off as an affect of his hangover.

As he stepped out of the elevator he caught Rose looking at him curiously, wanting to know what happened. Looking at her, he didn't' see the man walking towards the elevator until he crashed into him.

"Oh I'm sor--," he blinked in surprise as he saw the mans face. "Mikhail?" he smiled and embraced his godfather. "Sorry about that… What are you doing here?" he asked. Mikhail laughed.

"I was in the neighborhood, and your father called, so I came over," he explained cheerfully in his thick accent.

Jack tensed, "And people go missing from the hospital Jack, one or two a month. We find them in the custody of the Russian mob, usually right before they get sold into slavery and prostitution." Jack shifted uncomfortably, "When did he call?" he asked casually.

"Just moments ago," Mikhail answered with a shrug, "And if you would excuse me Jack, I would hate to keep him waiting," he said politely, patting jack on the shoulder as he moved towards the elevator.

As the elevator closed behind Mikhail, Jack leaned against the nurse's station taking a deep breath. He ran a hand over his head; he was being crazy. He'd been listening to Kate too much, and with his head fogged up from his hangover he was imaging things that weren't there.

Jack jumped when Rose put her hand on his arm, "Jack, are you feeling alright? You look pale," she asked and Jack nodded raising his eyebrows as he drew a deep breath, swallowing down a sudden lump in his throat. He checked the clock, still about an hour till he was supposed to meet Kate. "Yeah…I'm fine…um… I'm just gonna head out a bit early though Rose," he said starting for the door. His head was pounding and he ran a hand over his head feeling sweat on his forehead.

Rose frowned, but didn't stop him as he exited through the sliding doors and headed down to the parking garage. She sighed worried for him; he was so pale he looked like he had just seen a ghost.

**Moments Later:**

Jack froze as he turned the corner, and ducked back behind a wall of the parking complex. His father opened another door from the hospital offering someone a small smile. Jack waited a moment, his breath caught in his throat as his trauma patient Emma's mother emerged, giving his father a teary eyed smile of gratitude. Following her was Mikhail, who smirked at Christian, causing his father to stiffen. Jack let out a ragged breath as he watched Mikhail open a door to his car, the woman got in tentatively. As Mikhail pulled out jack dashed to his car. Putting on a pair of sunglasses, he followed them out onto the streets.

Jack shifted in his seat uncomfortably. He looked in his mirror and chuckled at the absurditity of what he was doing. Sitting two cars behind MikHail, Jack ran a hand through his hair. He was being crazy. There was…There HAD to be a reasonable explanation for what he was seeing. He'd been tailing his godfather, a man he'd known his entire life for over half an hour. The light turned green and Jack followed Mikhail as he made a right hand turn.

"Ten more minutes," he muttered to himself, "If nothing happens in ten minutes I'm turning around and going to lunch, and putting this stupidity behind me," he told himself resolutely, breathing heavily. He closed his eyes, trying to calm himself. Despite the fact that nothing was happening, or maybe because nothing was happening, Jack felt adrenaline coursing through him, his heart thudding loudly against his chest, making it hard to breathe.

Mikhail turned again and pulled in behind an abandoned warehouse where a van was already waiting. A blonde man with shoulder length hair was leaning casually against the door; another was waiting inside the van behind the wheel.

Jack swallowed hard, he recognized the blonde man; Ford something or other. He'd been acquitted on a technicality for possession with intent to sell last month. Benjamin Linus had paid for his lawyer. Jack pulled out his cell phone, careful to keep his car out of sight as he dialed 9-1-1.

His hand shook as he put the phone down after giving the operator his location and he resumed watching the scene.

Mikhail took the woman from the car. She was crying and frightened now. Mikhail called to Ford, who rolled his eyes in exasperation before coming to Mikhail's aid. The woman got in a good kick below Fords waist before they got her limbs under control. Their heads shot up as they heard a siren. Jack looked up too; the police would be coming from the other direction, nearest to the station. He pulled his car out quietly and left just as a police cruiser came speeding into the lot.

Jack pulled into another nearby parking lot, shaking. He fumbled to open the car door and stumbled out, vomiting into a bush. Breathing heavily his shoulders shook and he balled his hands into fists. Kate had been right. He shivered; his father was working for Benjamin Linus.

**Across Town: DA Office:**

Kate sighed in relief as she looked at the clock. It was finally time for her to meet with Jack. She took the folder of evidence on Christian Shephard off of her desk, feeling her heart thud madly against her chest. She'd opted to leave some things out of the file. Finding out about his fathers illegal mob activities was going to be hard enough without learning of his fathers escapades to Australia too. He didn't need to find out about it; not today. Stepping out of her officer Sayid almost ran her over, looking panicked as he kept sprinting down the hall. Ana was right behind him.

"You'll have to reschedule with Romeo Kate. We have a problem,"Ana hollered as she ran passed; despite being breathless taking a verbal jab at Kate as she went by.

Kate swallowed hard ignoring the bait and broke into a run after them, file at hand.

"What happened?" Kate asked breathlessly as she caught up to Ana at the elevator; Sayid was running down the stairs ahead of them.

"One of our deep cover operatives in Linus's crew got arrested," Ana said.

Kate paled slightly, it was never good for deep cover agents to draw attention to themselves, especially threw arrests and botched jobs. "Which one?" she whispered.

Ana rolled her eyes, "Ford," she replied, her voice taking on an icier edge. Kate sighed; of course it was Sawyer. "He's out on bail, and meeting us out back," Ana added as they stepped into the elevator.

Sayid had beaten them down by seconds, and was standing in the back alley waiting patiently when they arrived. Sawyer slunk into the alley moments later, casually looking back over his shoulder to make sure he hadn't been followed before entering the shadows to talk to the lawyers.

"Well isn't this a little pow-wow," he greeted them, "Hey Freckles," he added with a grin, and Kate rolled her eyes at the chronic flirt. "Ana-Lulu, Abdul," he added, tipping his head as if he had a cowboy hat on. "Nice to see ya'll again," he added sarcastically, fishing his hand into his pocket. "Some goody goody Samaritan called in an anonymous tip, Mikhail was making a drop, some chick who thought she was going to get faulty insurance papers drawn up was the cargo. Kid was in the hospital apparently," he said with a shrug as he found what he was looking for and fished out a lighter and a cigarette, lighting it and taking a puff.

"How's your cover?" Sayid asked concerned.

Sawyer shrugged, seemingly unconcerned, "Pickett was pissed about getting arrested…again," he laughed. Sayid rolled his eyes. "Here's the tape of the phone call," he added, tossing it to Sayid who raised an eyebrow suspiciously, "What?" he asked with a smirk, "The L.A.P.D's finest should know better then to let copies of evidence get so close to convicts," he shrugged.

Sayid hit play on the recorder and Kate gasped as Jacks voice came over the speaker. "That sounds like Jack," Ana declared sounding surprised. Sayid nodded somberly.

"Who?" Sawyer asked.

Kate ran her hand over her face, "He's…he's part of the investigation," she admitted.

"Well Jackass nearly blew my cover then," Sawyer said angrily his southern accent kicking into over drive. "I don't mind getting busted for real but make sure you keep your new assets in line," he said angrily.

Kate opened her mouth to retort when the door from the office screeched open. Sawyer jumped, and turned his back to the door to hid his face just before Cindy stuck her head out. She flushed.

"Sorry to interrupt, but …Miss Austen…there's a Jack Shephard waiting for you in your office," she said giving the back of Sawyer a once over curiously before closing the door.

Sawyer let out a breath of relief, "Keep Jackass out of my business from now on Freckles," he said again, the anger gone from his voice as he gave her and Ana a flirtatious smile before slinking back out of the alley.

Kate took the stairs two at a time to reach her office. She burst into to find Jack sitting on the couch, his shoulders hunched defensively and his face pale as he tapped his foot on the tile anxiously. He was trembling.

"Jack…?" she whispered as she kneeled between his lets in front of him. She raised his chin to look at her eyes, and only then did he seem to realize that she was there and that he wasn't alone. He blinked and refocused his gaze on her, seeing the same loving and concerned look there as always, her head tilted to the side slightly. She put her hands tentatively over his, and he instinctively took them in his still trembling hands. She stayed silent, waiting for him to compose himself. He looked at her for a long moment, swallowing hard before he could find his voice.

"You were right," he whispered finally. Her forehead came to rest on his, silently. She had practiced how she would persuade him for hours, not sleeping the night before as she nervously went over every line, every argument he might make against her. Kate swallowed hard, fighting back her own tears as she felt a single one hit her shoulder as Jack's strong shoulders shook against her; she hadn't thought of what to say to him once he believed her.

He pulled back slightly, his eyes dry but red, "I'm in," he whispered, his voice hoarse and raw from the effort of keeping his emotions in check, "I'll help you bring down my father," he said firmly.

* * *

_Oh boy, I so hope that wasn't a let down on jack finding out. If it was let me know, I kinda figured at this point Jack is in shock a bit(cause obviously findign something Like that out would be sort of mind blowing and earth shattering in the worst possible way...). I dunno, I'm unusually unhappy with this chap. So I'm very interested in hearign what you all have to say about it. _

_Also, i would love to hear your opinions on the current jate situation on the real show. Let me know what you think in your review if you want!_

_Thank you so much again for your awsome reviews, it was the highest chapter yet. (which makes this review junkie very happy)_

_10=new chap (assuming I can log in this time lol-)_


	13. The Deadline

_Okay, I know, I am a horrible horrible fanfiction author. But life was just "AHHHH!" for the last month and a half ish. Its a busy time for everyone my age and fairly stressful. I had to use all of my creative energies on these intense papers that I had to be graded on, and that just was zapping me, and then testing.... _

_Okay, so now that you have heard my totally lame excuse let me say this: I am really sorry that this is so delayed in getting out and that its only a set up chapter. Let me say again though, THIS FIC WILL GET FINISHED. I cant guarentee an update rapidly, b/c I wrote this more during a momentary break in the intense mega final legs of the educational year sprint then at the end of it. So, for the next few weeks things will be touch and go, hopefully at least 1 or 2 more updates this month (at least...) But I CAN guarentee that the second this lifts up a bit, I will be shooting chaps out left and right like I did with Redemption b/c I absolutely love this fic and I am excited about where it goes._

* * *

Kate looked over her shoulder, back into her office where Jack was staring out the window desolately.

"From what Jack's told you…it doesn't sound like we would have enough to try or convict Christian based on that instance," Sayid said quietly, one hand under his chin as he pondered their circumstances.

Kate nodded quietly in agreement, watching Jack shift restlessly against the windowsill, in her office through the open door frame.

"He would be let off the hook on reputation alone," Ana said angrily, adding a few choice words in Spanish under her breathe. Kate smiled weakly to reassure her friend, before turning her attention back to Jack, his palms on his forehead as he rocked back and forth. She swallowed hard, trying hard to shake off the feeling that this was her fault. He was dealing with the truth. It had always been the truth, only now he knew about it. She let out a deep breath. He wouldn't hate her for it…would he?

"But he's willing to work with us?" Sayid asked, bring her attention back to matters at hand. Kate ran a hand through her hair, she'd let it fall lose as they had settled into their meeting.

She cast another look at Jack's hunched back, his white knuckles tight and straining against the window frame to stop his shoulders from shaking. "Yeah," she said quietly, "He is."

**St. Sebastains:**

Mikhail felt the blood coursing through every vein. His body was on fire and adrenaline was consuming. He closed his fist tight, using his training and years of experience to contain his emotions until he made it to the end of the hall.

He really hated getting arrested.

It wasn't so much that he was worried about jail time, Ben had links to some key judges that would take care of that. Money wasn't an issue either for someone like him, someone Ben considered a valuable asset to his business. It was just so damn obnoxious to get arrested. Time consuming and irritating.

His lip twitched upwards, a hint of smile growing on his face. It was rare he had a constructive outlet to use his energy on after a blunder and arrest. But Ben had called right after his release and given him had almost made the stoic Russian tear up in laughter. Ben was giving Christian an ultimatum.

Christian had 48 hours to come clean to Jack about his future in the family business, or Ben would break the news for him.

He stormed into Christians office, ignoring the young secretaries feeble verbal attempts to stop him.

Christian bristled and set down his scotch glass as he entered, the ice making a soft distinctive clink as it hit the table. Christian kept his face neutral and stoic, giving only a cold nod of acknowledgement. Mikhail smirked, his fist closing tighter. Christian would fight him on this, and Mikhail knew he would enjoy toying with that pretentious son of a bitch.

"We need to talk," he said, opening the conversation in his thick Russian accent.

Christians face faltered momentarily, nervously, before setting back into a poker face, and elegantly gesturing to a chair. Mikhail ignored the offer, instead popping open an old looking bottle of wine for himself, taking a long swig.

Christian gave him a moment before sighing in irritation, "Well?" he inquired, exasperated.

"Ben wants you to tell Jack," Mikhail said, taking another chug of the wine.

Christians jaw clenched, a small vein popping against his skin, "I know, you already told me that Mikhail," he said quietly, his teeth grinding.

"But now there is a deadline Christian," Mikhail said, his one eye taking on a small glint of amusement as Christian bristled even further, his nostrils flaring angrily, like an mother hen about to protect its young. "You have 48 hours to tell Jack about what you're job really entails, or Ben will tell him for you," Mikhail smirked, "And I think he might not gloss over some of the less…morally gray shall we call them? Details you may wish to keep from him," Mikhails smiled widened as Christians face went pale, a clear indication that he got the message, "Like Austrailia," he added, just to rub his face in it.

Christian swallowed tightly, "This isn't his debt to pay Mikhail. He never asked for this," Christian argued again half heartedly.

Mikhail nodded in mock agreement, "You're absolutely right Christian, he never did. But you did. Years ago you signed up for this. You agreed that everything you were everything you ever would be, body and soul was his when you made that agreement. Jack comes from you, by his blood, we Own him. Ben owns him," Mikhail smiled, "Of course if he doesn't see it that way, or refuses to cooperate, Ben can find ways of, "Mikhail smiled, picking up a letter opener and running t over his thumb lightly testing the edge. It opened his finger slightly and blood trickled out, he raised it inches from his throat, "dealing with the problem," he finished, imitating the motion with the opener.

Christian swallowed and nodded curtly, "I'll make him understand," he agreed quietly.

Mikhail put down the letter opener and clapped Christian loudly on the shoulder, "I knew you would come around to see Ben's side of things," he patted the man again. "I have business to attend to now Christian, but it was very nice to talk," he said, closing the office door on the still white faced man inside.

**The D.A's office:**

"I guess we have to go tell him whats going on," Ana said after a long silence. Kate nodded quietly, and Sayid sighed.

"We shouldn't all go," Kate said quietly. Ana nodded in agreement.

"He might feel ambushed," she agreed, "I'll hang back, introduce him to Sayid and explain the plan," she told Kate.

Kate swallowed and stood, straightening her skirt and picking at the rim of her shirt as she crossed the hall.

"Jack?" She said softly as she knocked on the frame. Jack was lying stretched on the couch, his hand over his face, he shot up as he heard her say his name.

"Kate," he said her name breathily, startled and disoriented.

"I didn't mean to wake you," she offered as an apology, coming to sit besides him as he swung his feet down from over the edge.

He ran a hand over his head, "You guys were in there for a long time," he said, his eyebrows raising inquisitively, asking without asking the question he wanted to ask.

"We had to go over your statement. Make a plan," she explained.

He licked his lips, and nodded in affirmation, "I want this to be over," his voice cracked, "When do I testify?" he asked.

She winced," Not yet," she said quietly, avoiding eye contact as she felt his shoulders slump next to her, instead looking to Sayid who was standing quietly in the door way.

"Why not?" Jack asked, irritation creeping into his voice.

"We don't have enough to convict him yet, we need you to go back to work Jack," she explained, trying to keep calm to keep him calm.

He shook his head, his eyebrows pulling together angrily as he stood up. He gave a hollow laugh, "You staged an entire relationship, for what?" He shook his head again, ignoring the hurt surprise that crossed Kate's face, "You don't' have anything on him?"

"Nothing concrete enough to hold up on its own in court," she admitted, avoiding his intense glare.

Sayid cut in, "That's why we need you Jack. You need to go back to work, act like nothing is wrong, and try to gain more information. Now that you know, find someway to get inside more, cross over into that life," he explained quickly.

Jack swallowed, "You want me to be an informant?" he said, his hands on his head.

Sayid nodded, "Essentially, yes. We want you to help us put a criminal behind bars," he added, not mentioning the fact that they would gladly let Christian walk if he did what they were banking on him doing; turning in a bigger fish-hopefully Ben Linus, or at least, the next link in the food chain towards that.

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_yay! for set up chapters. _

_I can guarentee you will all enjoy the next one :wiggleseyebrows:_

_Anyways, since, obviously last time I couldn't fufil my end of the 10 reviews gets an update, this time I am not making it a requirement. I would appriciate reviews if you are still interested because they really will help me try to make the time for writing this. That and the recent kick of Jate in the show (OMG the other nights episode was THE BESTEST JATENESS EVER- I love Kate, and I can't blame Jack even if I want to lol) anyways, reviews plus all the jateness of the show have really put me in a Truth and/or fanfiction in general writing mood. _

_I would love to hear your opinions on what you thought of Follow the Leader, and hopefully you still are interested in this fic and review! have a nice weekend!_


	14. The Debt

This chapter was the hardest one I have ever had to write. I knew what had to happen but making it happen in a somehwat organic way was a huge pain. Hopefully it doesn't come off too badly.

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Jack ran a tired hand through his hair as he starred blankly out the window of his apartment into the clear night sky. He swirled the scotch in his cup. He took it neat, unable to stand the soft clink of ice cubes in his drink the way his father loved. His teeth ground involuntarily as he thought of his father, and he poured the burning liquid down his throat to wash away the bile threatening to rise. With a tired sigh Jack poured himself another drink and resumed looking out the window.

How was he going to pretend everything was normal when he went back to the hospital? He swallowed hard again, his father had always been able to catch his tells. He couldn't lie to him. He'd never been able to lie to him. Now, he wasn't just going to lie to his father, he was going to betray him. Jacks face twisted in disgust. He'd spent his entire life living to please the man, and now…He pinched the bridge of his nose and finished off the glass in his hand, slamming it down hard like a shot glass, his knuckles almost white around the rim. Abandoning the glass he picked up the bottle; half full.

He was going to inform to the FBI on his father. He was going to be a spy. He took a swig, feeling the effects instantly as James Bonds theme song drifted into his head. No, he thought, it wouldn't be like that, the part of him that wasn't completely trashed reminded him. It wouldn't be glamorous; it was just him, being a rat. He took a long angry swig from the bottle. Did his mother know about her husbands illegal activities, he wondered suddenly, swallowing hard at the thought. How much of his life was a lie? He took another swig, polishing down the bottle till only a fourth of its contents were left.

He groaned and reached into his pocket pulling out his cell phone. Scrolling through his contacts he froze as his fathers name came up. It would be so easy to call him, to yell and scream, and simply be furious; instead he had to be cold and calculating, continuing to play the part of the approval seeking son, dutifully following his fathers every order, while secretly aiding in his arrest. He started to dial, before flipping the phone closed and hurling it angrily into his bedroom, hearing a loud clatter as the phone hit something, causing it to crash to the ground. He winced.

"I should prolly get that," he muttered; not hearing his own slur. His legs betrayed him as he tried to stand, still holding the bottle in one hand and he fell to the floor next to his coffee table. He giggled drunkly, "'pose it can wait then," he added, taking another swig as he lay there. Looking at the nearly empty bottle, his thoughts turned sour again as he remembered why he was drinking to begin with. His hand shook and the bottle tipped over, the contents pooling and sinking into the rug. He sighed. What a waste. Glancing at the clock he groaned and closed his eyes, he had to be at work in a couple hours. Crap.

**St. Sebastians; Executive Floor:**

Christians fingers drummed lightly on the railing outside his office as he sipped his Irish Coffee and watched the bustling trauma center below him. He heard a scream and a door open with a bang and his eyes flew up to the source of the noise. Jack was applying pressure to a gunshot victims chest as he shouted orders to the nurses and interns around him as the patients blood seeped between his fingers. The blood was all over his hands. Christians jaw clenched remembering Mikhail's words. He had to tell Jack, and soon, or Ben would do it for him. Christian massaged his forehead in irritation. Ben would get into…unnecessary…details. Ben would tell Jack about Australia.

A hint of a smile appeared on Christians lips as Jack stabilized the gunshot vic. His son was a doctor. A good doctor; one of the best actually. Jack shouldn't be a flunky to Benjamin Linus. Christian bristled indignantly; his own life and his sons were rapidly spinning out of his control. He sighed in defeat. There was nothing he could do about it for the time being. He had dug his own grave, and as a result, his sons as well.

He felt a tightening in his chest as he resigned himself to this fate, and made eye contact with a nurse in the trauma center below, gesturing for her to get his sons attention. The nurse tapped Jack on the shoulder and pointed up towards Christians position on the balcony. Jack followed her gaze and his face went blank as they made eye contact. Even from afar Christian could see his sons jaw clench. Christian gave his head a silent jeck back, signaling for Jack to meet him in his office. Without a word Christian turned and walked back to wait for his son.

**5 Minutes Later:**

Jacks fists clenched and unclenched again as the elevator lurched to a stop. Stepping out he took a shaky breath. He'd barely been able to look at his father since he found out. He didn't know if he would be able to pretend everything was okay during an actual conversation with him. And his pounding head wasn't going to help matters. As Jack entered his father's office he heard the distinctive clink of the ice in his fathers drink. Christian turned from the window to meet his son. He offered Jack a tight, forced smile. Jack gave a stiff nod in return, unable to speak as he felt his mouth run dry.

Christian's eyes darted around the room, as neither was sure of what to say to break the thick tension that was cloaking the room.

"Drink?" Christian offered finally.

Jack swallowed hard looking at the bottle before stuffing his hands in his pockets to keep from reaching for it. "No thanks," he said quietly.

Christian nodded and took a sip of his scotch as the uncomfortable silence returned. "Jack, I'm going to need you to go to a dinner party tomorrow night," Christian said finally, struggling but succeeding in keeping his tone even and formal.

Jack frowned, taking a deep breath to remind himself to keep pretending he was still oblivious to his fathers actions. "I didn't know the hospital was having a fundraiser," he managed.

Christian swallowed hard before meeting his sons eyes, "Its not for the hospital Jack. Benjamin Linus is having a dinner party, and both of us are going to be in attendance," he said calmly, watching his sons face go white.

"Benjamin Linus?" Jack whispered his voice hoarse and his mind racing. He hadn't expected his father to come right out and admit an affiliation to the infamous mobster. Neither, he recalled, had anyone at the D.A's, who had expected it to take months for his father to confide anything to him. He turned away, running a hand over his head. Did his father…did Ben… know that he was aware of his fathers and the hospitals connection to the mob?

He swallowed hard, trying to compose himself before he turned back to his father. He shook his head silently, struggling to make his voice work. "Why," he felt his voice crack, "Why would we be going to a party hosted by Benjamin Linus dad?" he asked, nearly choking on the last word. The lie he was telling as well as the answer he knew was coming made his mouth run dry, and he pinched the bridge of his nose.

Christian licked his lips and drew a deep breath, drawing himself up to his full height. "We're going because we were invited," he said slowly, continuing before Jack could cut him off, "And we were invited because Benjamin Linus is a very old acquaintance of mine," he said stiffly, "And I owe him a great deal," he added somewhat resentfully, hoping his son would understand the implications without him having to spell it out.

Jack gave a hollow laugh, "You work for him," he spat, his face drawn in disgust. Jack swallowed hard, waiting for the response he knew was coming, but needing to hear that his father was really doing this from his own mouth before he went any farther with his own duplicity; but most of all, he needed to give his father one last chance to deny it.

"Yes," Christian admitted after a long moment. Jack let out an angry defeated sigh, and clenched his fist, feeling rage bubble within him.

"Why do I have to go to this party," he asked after a long pause, feeling his heart pound against his chest rapidly; he dreaded the answer.

Christian closed his eyes tightly and shook his head slightly. "Jack, when I started, I didn't know it would be like this, "he started, offering his ignorance as an apology and he reached out towards his son, who jerked away, sending him a look of disgust. "The debt I owe…owed Linus has financially been paid back ten times over," Christian said quietly, licking his lips, "But…what I didn't realize at the time was that Ben was making an investment when he helped me. He was making an investment not just in me, but in my family," Christian said slowly, as his words meaning seemed to get through to Jack who began to shake his head slowly.

"No," Jack said firmly, running a hand over his cropped hair and down over his face. He grit his teeth before jabbing an accusing finger into his fathers Chest. "You did this. Not Me," Christian said nothing, only further infuriating his son. Jack pulled away and turned towards the window, putting his hands on his head, as if he was trying to hold it together as a million questions and emotions battled for control. "I won't do anything for Benjamin Linus," he said finally, his voice raw, "It's your debt not mine. I'm not a criminal," he added scathingly.

"You don't have a choice Jack," his father replied calmly, seemingly unaffected by his sons insinuation. "Ben's made an investment in your future. He's been lining you to follow in my footsteps as the Chief of this hospital since he found out you'd been conceived."

Jack's face paled and he turned back to Christian. "What do you mean since I was conceived?" he all but hissed.

Christian looked at him almost pityingly, "Why do you think I was forced to push you so hard to become a doctor?" he asked sadly.

Jack gave another hollow laugh as his eyebrows raised into the air furiously. "You don't get to blame everything on Linus dad," Jack said vehemently, his hands shaking from trying to contain the swirling emotions in his head, as he tried to tread the line between genuine horror at what his father was revealing and what he was himself withholding. He took a deep breath and pinched his nose, trying to think of a way to escape going to the dinner party.

"You don't have a choice Jack," Christian repeated as if reading his thoughts, "If you don't cooperate you'll be lucky if Ben decides to just kill you and cut his losses," he warned, his voice almost pleading as he hoped his son would see reason.

Jack met his eye and for a long moment, they simply glared at each other, a duel of wills that Jack knew he had to lose but felt compelled to fight anyway. He'd already promised to help the D.A bring his father down, and now he had to do so if he ever wanted to be free from Linus's grip himself.

"I'll see you tomorrow night," Jack said finally, resentfully, before turning on his heel and slamming the door behind him. He felt his hand tremble as he stalked down the hall. Counting to five did nothing. The fear of what he was getting into was gone, at least temporarily, but everything else was still there; the anger, the betrayal. He cursed under his breath, he couldn't work like this, emotional and unfocused. With a sigh he punched out early yet again and headed for his truck. He had to work it out. He had to run.

**The Stadium/Later that Day:**

Jack sighed as he leaned against his car panting. He took a swig from his water bottle before slamming his fist angrily into the side of his truck. Everything was a lie. He ran a hand over his head and gripped the side of the car tightly. He felt like he was falling, and more and more things he'd thought he knew were slowly unraveling around him. Kate wasn't who she'd said she was, his father and godfather were deeply involved in illegal mob activities, and now, he was suppose to join them in those activities or die-if he was lucky.

"This can't be happening," he muttered, his chest tightening painfully. He sighed, exhausted and drained from the last few days revelations.

He climbed slowly into the drivers seat of his truck and lay his head against the headrest. He pinched the bridge of his nose. He needed a drink. A long drink. He moved to turn the engine on when he caught sight of his glove compartment and sighed again, remembering the second cell phone that was hidden there.

He pulled it out and gave a hollow laugh. It was a prepaid phone with an emergency contact number to the D.A on speed-dial. He was suppose to 'keep them informed' on any 'developments' in the case. He grit his teeth. His father confessing his connection to Linus and bringing him into the fold against his will probably counted as something they would want to be updated on.

He flipped the phone open then closed. He didn't want to talk about this with just whoever was stuck on phone duty for the graveyard shift. Kate's face flashed into his mind and a small smile tugged the corner of his lips despite his mood.

He pulled his own phone out of his pocket and scrolled through the contact list until he came to the number for 'Kate Ryan'. He licked his lips as the number dialed, hoping the number was still in use and making a mental note to change 'Ryan' to "Austen'.

When she answered the phone she sounded breathless, "Hello?" He smiled hearing her voice.

"Hi," he said quietly, his voice thick, stressed, and exhausted.

"Jack," she whispered, sounding surprised, "What's wrong?" she added, picking up on his distress from his tone instantly.

He scratched his head, "I uh," he gave a weak hollow laugh, "I talked with my dad today," he said quietly, his voice cracking on dad as it had all day.

Kate shook her head, searching for words, and swallowed thickly before answering, "Jack, we can't talk about this on this phone line," she warned, feeling a surge of guilt for not being able to be there for him, even if only over a telephone, when he sounded so lost.

He laughed nervously again, "Yeah," he swallowed and nodded, "Right. I'll ah…I'll just go then," he finished quietly.

"No wait!" Kate jumped, "If you need to talk Jack," she shifted, contemplating the words that were on the tip of her tongue. Ana would be furious she knew, but, she licked her lip, Jack sounded horrible. He needed someone and he'd turned to her. "Let me come over?" she offered, smiling slightly in an effort to sound reassuring, "We can talk there okay?" she elaborated calmly, not wanting Jack to be alone when he sounded so confused.

He smiled slightly and let out a thankful sigh, "Yeah," his voice was still thick," Yeah, that sounds good." Kate smiled and went to hand up, "And Kate," he added in a whisper, causing her breath to hitch as she paused, "Thank you."

She swallowed hard, becoming more and more afraid of what Jack was so upset about. "Jack its not a problem," she said feeling a lump again rise in her throat.

**Half an Hour Later:**

Jack opened the door still dripping wet from a shower, wearing only a pair of sweatpants. She felt her face turn red as he let her in.

"Sorry," he said, pulling a Red Sox shirt on, "I went running earlier," he explained sounding distracted.

He offered her a seat on the couch silently and sat in an armchair next to it. He scratched his head as Kate sat watching him silently, her head cocked in concern.

"It's safe to talk here right?" he asked finally, his head shooting up to meet her eyes, his dark and weary, "There aren't any…bugs…or," he chuckled humorlessly, unable to believe it was a question he actually had to ask someone.

Kate looked down uncomfortably, "No, the DA…we had your apartment swept for bugs this morning," she said apologetically.

Jack chuckled again, "Right," he rocked forward slightly, his brow furrowing further.

Kate frowned watching him struggle. "Hey," she leaned forward, putting his hand into hers, "Talk to me," she whispered her voice thickening.

He looked up slightly, meeting her eyes and let out a jagged breath. Kate felt a lump catch in her throat as she watched his eyes, dark rings surrounded both of them.

He licked his lip as his eyebrows rose, " He called me into his office today, "he stood up and walked to the window unable to keep looking at her, torn between his lingering feelings of betrayal from his relationship with Kate Ryan and his growing desire to hold Katherine Austen.

"Oh," Kate said quietly, she shifted, "Jack I know it's going to be hard to be around him but-"

He cut her off, "I'm invited to a dinner party hosted by Benjamin Linus for tomorrow night," he said quietly turning back to her, eyebrows raised as if silently asking her what he was supposed to do.

"How did that come up?" she asked so quietly he almost didn't hear her.

He leaned against the wall and shrugged. "I just walked into his office and he told me I had to attend the party," Jack swallowed, "And then he said that Ben is apparently grooming me to take Christians place, at both the hospital and as one of his lackies, " he added, his voice cracking.

She stood silently and came over to him. She hesitated for a second, unsure of how he would react given their history, but wrapped her arms around him anyways, standing on her toes to put her head on his shoulder. "It'll be okay, "she whispered, her breath hitting his ear causing him to stiffen momentarily before his strong arms encircled her tightly. He buried his face into her hair as she brought her head back down to lye on his chest.

He shivered slightly and her small arms tightened around him. "Where do we go from here?" he asked quietly, his voice muffled against her hair.

She pulled away, running a hand over her face as she thought of their next step, "The D.A will want you to wear a wire from now on, if Christian wants you in with him, then we need eyes and ears on the whole thing," she said calmly, licking her lip and shooting him a guilty look before continuing, "And you'll have to go to this party," she added, unsure if he was really ready. Jack nodded slowly, trying to let it all sink in, "If your up to it that is," she added, trying to give him an out and hoping he would take it. He didn't look ready to be thrown into the belly of the beast, and she couldn't blame him. Everything he knew had been turned upside down in a just a few short days.

"No," he waved his hand, "I already told him I would go," he let out a heavy breath. She frowned, not convinced it was a good idea. "Really," he added reassuringly, not feeling like the words were completely hollow; in her presence, for the first time all day, he finally was starting to feel like he could breathe again.

She smiled slightly; almost as if she understood the effect she was having on him and walked back to him, taking his face in her hands. "We'll bring him in Jack, I promise. You don't have to work for him," she whispered as she looked into his eyes, still heavy and haunted from the last few days revelations.

He nodded slowly and she smiled, glad he was able to trust her word again. Her breath caught in her throat though as his eyes didn't return to hers, focused instead a few inches lower. In the second it took Kate to comprehend what was about to happen Jack acted. His hands moved from her shoulders to her cheeks, cupping her face tenderly as one thumb gently brushed her cheek, his lips meeting hers with equal gentleness. Quickly however, he was pressing harder, pouring everything he'd been feeling about the case along with his confusion about their relationship into her. Unable to stop him a slight moan escaped her mouth and he moved his head to her neck, flipping them as he held her in his arms, turning so that she was sandwiched between the wall and his chest, her head lulling back against it due to the feelings he was stirring in her.

She wanted to give in, even as his arms held her Kate could remember their night together as if it was happening at that moment; his lips and hands skimming under her shirt, across her stomach… He had meant it then. It had been about them and what they had felt. This was different. It was desperate and despite his initial tenderness it felt cold. There were no secrets between them now. No hidden agendas, no fake names. If there was even a chance of something real, something true, happening between them she sure as hell wasn't going to screw it up by starting their second chance off with this.

"Jack," she whispered, pulling back slightly, breathless, a fistful of his shirt tight in her hand, "We can't," she whispered pleadingly, hoping he would understand why.

He pulled back with a nod, scratching his head before he cleared his throat, his feet taking him slowly towards the door as he did so.

"Jack I-" she wanted to explain, almost regretting her choice as the warmth of his body left hers.

"No, I get it," his voice was cold but his eyes looked wounded and he averted them again quickly, "If something like this were to happen again," he licked his lip, his hand landing on the front door, "You would get taken off the case," he turned the handle.

She paled. That wasn't what this was about. He opened the door with a strained smile as Kate struggled for words, hurt and angry that he wouldn't let her explain.

"I'll call the D.A about what we talked about in the morning," he promised, closing the door on her.

Kate swallowed thickly pushing the palm of her hand against her burning eyes. She took a deep breath as she heard the deadbolt lock in place, trying to convince herself that while his understanding of her motivation had been way off, he wasn't completely wrong. She needed to be on the Linus case. She owed it to Sayid, to Alex, and to herself to see Linus's downfall through to the end. She swallowed hard; even if that meant putting any chance of her and Jack being together on hold.

Jack lay his head against the closed front door, feeling a now farmiliar tightness return to his chest. It had been selfish to kiss her He was an assignment. A asset in a trial, and a means to an end. She needed him to make a case and she had already proven that she would use almost any means to get Benjamin Linus convicted. He felt the corner of his lip twitch up in a smile despite himself, adoring her determination and conviction. He shook his head, he knew better though. Getting into another relationship that had been built on lies was just asking for trouble. His teeth ground together and his jaw clenched as his mind instantly went to memories of Sarah and his father. So many lies. His chest tightened further. He glanced around feeling trapped, relieved to spot an unopened bottle on the counter. He popped the top off easily. He didn't even bother with getting a glass.

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Miscommunication and interuptions, Jates two great problems. Let me put it this way, Jate in fiction as well as the show will never be able to be together till they move past those silly love shapes. And yes, that is my not so subtle hint for the next chapter.

And obviously Jack has some massive issues. (Anyone think I need to move this to an M rating?)

10 reviews=update [ And yes, I actually mean it this time, next chapter has the potential for massive coolness]


	15. The Van

_I'm in a creative writing class. It makes me feel guilty when I don't update. (So, I guess thats good news lol-since I have updated two fics this week-progress right? baby steps?)_

_And sadly, I didn't mean that kind of M, I am so NOT qualified to write that lol. I meant context wise, with Jack's drinking etc, I wasn't sure if I needed to move this to M. Sorry for the confusion._

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"This chip is very important," Ana said, adding a stress on every word as she waved the small device inches from his face. Jack nodded quietly, feeling the adrenaline pump through his veins, and he nervously adjusted his tie. Ana glanced at the device in her hand seeming to suddenly draw a blank, "Hurley why is it important again?"

"If he gets that within a foot of a computer or portable device it will be able to piggy back the signals and we can copy, download, and then crack the information on it. So, essentially, we want you to get as close to as many important people as possible. And, ideally, if you can 'wander' into Ben's office, maybe get his hard drive, it would be most appreciated," Charlie interrupted in one breath as he typed data into the computer, configuring the cameras they had on the Linus estate.

Jack nodded again as Hurley fit an ear piece in his ear. Charlie jumped from the computer and came over placing a pin on the collar of Jack's shirt. "Whats that one for?" Jack asked, his voice low as he tried to keep calm, about to walk into the lions den.

"We will be able to hear anything you say this way, and it's a camera," Charlie grinned at him.

"Charlie, say something into the mic, I have a confirmed visual, but I want to check the audio," Ana ordered from Charlie's vacated seat at the computer.

"Okay right," Charlie rubbed his hands together, mulling over the difficult decision of what to say, "You all everybody, You all everybody!" he sang, varying the pitch frequency as he cried like a wounded dying animal. Jack winced.

"What was that?" he asked.

Charlie blinked in surprise, "You've never heard of Driveshaft?"

"Oh here we go…" Hurley muttered.

Charlie shot him an angry glare, "I write their music," he said, grinning ear to ear.

Hurley rolled his eyes, "Uncredited of course," he said dryly, raising an eyebrow as he looked at Jack, who smiled, amused by their banter.

Charlie glared at him again, "Well its not my bloody fault my room mate stole my music sheet while I was sleeping! I am Driveshaft!-or...I would have been," He hollered as Hurley waved him off. "If I was in it they wouldn't just be a bloody one hit wonder either!" he added, exuberantly.

"Sure Dude, and I use to be a millionaire," Hurley chuckled as he moved to futz with more of the equipment.

"Cut the chatter you too," Ana scolded again, taking a deep breath as she approached Jack, "Okay, you know what to do. Act natural. Don't do anything that is too suspicious, a lot of eyes are on you tonight, so we really only want you to test the waters," she put a supportive hand on his arm, but was interrupted by a knock on the back door of the van.

Charlie opened it an inch before allowing the Sayid and Kate to climb into the back of the van that was rapidly filling up like a clown car.

Kate offered Jack a small tentative smile as she met his eyes, but he shifted and looked away.

"What did we miss?" Sayid asked, oblivious to this exchange.

Ana frowned, tearing her eyes off Kate; she however hadn't missed the glances. "Jack was just about to go be the life of the party," she said teasingly, trying to ease Jack's nerves. He offered her a weak but polite smile for her efforts. Ana gave him a slight push towards the door, and Sayid opened it, nodding his good luck as Jack climbed out the back.

The door closed, and Kate starred after it a minute, debating her next move, "I'll be right back guys, I left my purse in the car," she said, scooting out the door after Jack.

Hurley starred at the chair she had just vacated, "…But…isn't that her purse?" he asked, pointing to the small bag hanging over the armrest.

**Outside the Van:**

"Jack, wait," Kate called, running to catch up to him. He froze but didn't turn to look at her, waiting until she was next to him to look at her, his eyes cold and distant.

She frowned, seeing the guards he was putting up, "Don't do that," she said, her voice half scolding and half pleading.

"Do what?" he asked coldly, knowing exactly what she was talking about.

Kate rocked back on her heal, hoping to giver herself more height against his strong solid frame, "That," she responded, pointedly raising an eyebrow.

He sighed relenting, and nodded. He was silent a long moment before he ran his hand over his hair, "What exactly is it you want from me Kate?" he asked, his eyes pleading as he forced his voice to remain neutral. He gave a slight hollow laugh, "You're right, this isn't…," he sighed and shifted in frustration, "We can't…" he glanced pointedly down at the pin on his suit.

Kate followed his line of sight, "Camera pin?" he nodded gravely. She ran a hand over her hair and gave a frustrated sigh.

Jack shifted on his feet, unsure if he wanted to open himself back up to her after the previous nights events, but again feeling a magnetic pull towards her he was powerless to resist. "Later?" he offered nervously, his head bowed slightly towards hers as he asked.

Kate's smile spread slowly until she was almost beaming, "Yeah, we can finish this later," she agreed, feeling her stomach flop as a matching grin spread across and illuminated his face. He turned to continue towards the estate when she grabbed his wrist, their hands becoming entwined as she gave his hand the slightest squeeze. He looked back at her curiously, his dark eyes intense and intent upon her, "Jack, what happened last night, it wasn't how it seemed," she assured him, not wanting to leave that hanging any longer, resisting the urge to spill the details to him right there, regardless of who was sitting in the van watching.

Jack responded with a small half smile and a small nod of his head, "Good," he said gently, raising his hand as if to brush a strand of hair out of her face before he stopped his hand, his small awkward smile spreading further across his face, "I ah, I have to go," he said with a small grimace, giving her a small wave as he stuffed his hands in his suit pockets and turned back towards the lions den.

Jack listened to his feet falling rhythmaticly as he walked, unable to stifle a laugh as he heard Charlie let out a long breath he must have been holding on the other side of his ear piece, "Bloody hell," he muttered in astonishment.

**Back Closer to the Van:**

Ana was standing with her arms crossed angrily over her chest, one hip jutted to a side in a way that was somehow disapproving when Kate returned to the van.

"No." Ana said firmly, her voice iciy and authoritative.

Kate swallowed hard, "No what?" she asked innocently, but Ana shook her head, not buying it.

"Whatever 'happened'," Ana continued, making use of air quotes, "And whatever 'talk' you think you are going to have later is NOT going to happen," Kate opened her mouth to protest, "I don't care. This case is more important then a guy Kate, "she put her hand on her face in confusion and exasperation, "I thought you of all people knew that!"

"I do know that Ana," Kate said calmly, hoping her friend would believe her.

Ana looked unconvinced, "We can not mess this up Kate. This is as close to Linus as we have ever been, and we can't have you sleeping with, or being in anyway involved with an asset on anything but a professional level," she elaborated, her tone cooling down, as she looked at her friend sympathetically. "I get it. He's a decent guy, he's not hard to look at, but this cruch its just…Its not worth it." She offered Kate a understanding smile, "Tell ya what, after the stake out, we'll go out, have some beers, pick up some guys, "she smiled, "have some fun ya know?"

Kate smiled meekly, she couldn't say no. Ana was right. This case had to come first; she-they all- had been involved in it too long to not see it through. She swallowed hard, trying to force her feelings, and her retort about her feelings for Jack not being a 'crush' down. "Yeah," she swallowed again, her throat tight, "Yeah that sounds like fun," she agreed, less then half heartedly.

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_Okay, this was originally a longer chap that goes into the actual dinner party, but the set up and conversations took longer then I thought they would, so next chap is going to be Jack trying his best to play 007. I have this hunch he isn't quite going to be the next Bond lol. (not yet anyway, I think he will have some Badass moments in the future though.)_

_Anyways, next chap you will see at least 3 maybe even 4 new faces pop up. Here are some hints: Three are dead, and one has buggy eyes (okay, that one was obvious)_

_And I know the Charlie/Driveshaft bit was probably a little forced, but I couldn't help myself, I've been dying to write his really bad 'Pilot' episode singing into a fic. _

_9 reviews, hope you enjoyed it and have a nice week!_


	16. The Party

_I know. I KNOW! Blah blah blah Im horrible for this disgusting hiatus. I KNOW! Sorry. But, I'm a senior, I have senioritis. It happens. Annnnyways. And its not like this seasons has inspired a lot of Jate ya know (yet, cause I believe as much as ever!) I was also writing a very bad, strictly for my own amusement, Superman Movie Screenplay. So…yeah. That's why I've been such a bad fanfic writer. Please forgive me_

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The piano music flowed over Jack as he entered the great hall where the party was being held. Sharply dressed waiters walked brusquely around the room, however most of the guest were congregated around the man at the piano. The piece swelled into a grand, complex finale. Jack's face twisted into a bitter smile as the crowd cheered, knowing before his father's head emerged from the middle of the crowd that he had been the one behind the piano. Christian laughed heartedly at something another guest said.

"So glad you could make it Jack," Mikhail greeted him, holding up a glass of alcohol.

Jack forced a smile, "I wasn't given much of a choice."

Mikhail's eyes narrowed momentarily, "Bitterness is not a quality Benjamin appreciates from his…associates," Mikhail said icily, looking towards the group of people surrounding Christian, "And it might not be a bad idea to remind your father of that. He's become a bit of a …liability…recently," he added, an underlying threat was clear, of what Jack didn't know. He swallowed.

"I'll remember that," Jack nodded, keeping his eyes on his father.

Christian spotted them from across the room and came to join them.

"Jack, I'm glad you decided to come," He nodded stiffly. Jack felt his jaw clench, afraid to say anything as the resentment and betrayal bubbled like hot oil in the pit of his stomach. Christian shifted irritably between his feet as Jack stayed silent.

Mikhail watched silently, sipping his drink to hide the corners of a smile that was growing on his face; he loved family dysfunction, and as a rule, anything that made Christian squirm.

"Ah Christian, this must be your son Jack," Came a voice from behind the trio. Jack turned quickly. The short bug eyed man standing in front of them wore almost no expression. The corner of his mouth twitched slightly, though the movement was so small Jack wasn't sure he'd actually seen anything at all. He was almost sickeningly pale, and his huge eyes seemed to take in every movement and inch of the crowd at once. His eyes settled on Jack, glancing at him from head to toe briefly before giving the slightest, almost imperceptible nod. He extended his hand to Jack, "Benjamin Linus, it's nice to finally meet you Jack."

Jack took a deep breath before extending his own and clasping it with the devils; not missing the way his father tensed up as he did so. "Nice to meet you to, Mr. Linus."

Ben's lips curled again into that bizarre mix of amusement and distaste, "Ben will be fine." Jack nodded. Ben looked from father to son, "Mikhail tells me you are quite the surgeon Jack," Ben continued, taking a small sip of from the glass in his hand.

Jack chuckled, "I do my best. Same as all of my colleagues," he stated, trying to remain calm and civil despite every nerve in his body screaming for him to do something, anything else.

Ben laughed, "No need to be so modest Jack. My…business…benefits from being associated with people as talented and shall I saw heroic? As you." There was a glint in Ben's eyes, as if by discussing all of this with Jack, he was letting Jack in on some inside joke. Which, in a way, he was.

Jack felt his cheeks pull back into a smile; it was weak, but the best he could muster as he felt the urge to throw up. No matter what the ultimate endgame he was playing towards was, he was a part of this world for now. A world whose horrific violence he had spent countless hours in the ER trying to undue.

Ben seemed to sense his hesitation and turned to Christian and Mikhail, who were trying to stand as far away from each other as could still be considered civil. "Christian, would you excuse us for a moment," it was phrased as a question, though the authority in Ben's voice was clear. Christian hesitated. "Do you need something Christian?" Ben asked, his voice taking on a hard edge. Christian pursed his lips.

"No," he paused, swallowing down whatever he'd been about to say, "I'll…catch up with you in a bit son," he finished quietly, leaving Jack alone with the wolves.

"I'm glad you finally decided join us Jack. Though I'll admit, I'm surprised it took so long. You've known about your fathers' dealings since you were what? Five? Six?"

Jack swallowed, "I uh, I don't…"

Mikhail cleared his throat. "Jack has…no memory of the…Incident."

Ben's lip curled upwards again, "Ah, yes. I forgot."

Jack frowned, "What are you talking about? What incident?"

"It's probably for the best that you don't remember Jack," Ben said, patting Jack on the shoulder. Ben let his arm rest there, and he steered Jack out to the balcony overlooking the ocean. Waves crashed on the rocks far below.

Ben took another sip of his drink. "I assume you know what your role will be within this organization?"

Jack stiffened, "I have some idea, yes."

Ben nodded, "Your father will be able to explain your role thoroughly some other time," he paused a moment, "Did you know that the FBI and the DEA have big black vans parked outside watching us right now?" He laughed, a full genuine laugh, as if it was the most amusing idea in the world. "But they won't ever come in Jack. They can't." He paused again, and stared out over the ocean, before turning back to Jack, the glint in his eyes was much more cunning and blood curling then before, "Do you want to know why?"

Jack swallowed and forced himself to nod. Ben hadn't mentioned the DA's office; hopefully that meant that no one had seen him emerge from their van, that their cover wasn't blown.

"See that man over there," he gestured across the room to a middle aged man, his hairline receding slightly. "That's Edward Mars, I won't bore you with any fancy titles, but essentially, anything the FBI does in this city, he approves. And well, he's in here." Ben grinned mischievously. "And he's very happy to keep the things the way they are. And the same goes for the big wigs at the DEA. And that means that Mr. Eko," he pointed to a massive man standing quietly in the corner, "gets to keep making his trips to and from Nigeria, without any…disruptions…" He paused for another moment, chewing his lip, "It would be very bad for business if Mr. Eko didn't make his trips…" he turned his attention back to Jack, "What I'm trying to say Jack, is that I know, as a doctor, as a...moral, law abiding citizen of this great country, you might be hesitant about standing here, talking to me, with all of the preconceived ideas you probably have about me from the media…but there is nowhere safer to be standing then right here Jack." Ben nodded again. "I protect my employees Jack. The benefits they receive are exquisite, expensive, and…exotic," he grinned and raised his eyebrows suggestively. Jack forced a smile. Ben's lips slipped back into their usual neutral state and he returned his gaze to the ocean. "I recommend staying on this side Jack," he sighed," Because the…severance package…is…painful." Ben finished, swirling the contents of his glass as he stared at the ocean, the almost imperceptible edge of menace to his words was almost swallowed by the serene sounds of the ocean; almost. Jack swallowed hard. Ben turned back to Jack. "I'm making myself very clear aren't I Jack?" he said calmly.

"Very clear," Jack said tightly. Ben smiled.

"I'm glad we understand each other then Jack," Ben said calmly, patting him on the shoulder again. "Come on then, I think dinner is almost ready."

Ben walked past him, leaving Jack alone on the balcony. Guest were filling into the dining hall. Jack let out a shaky breathe. He closed his eyes and listened to the surf, willing his heart rate to return to normal.

"Jack, you still there?" came Kate's quiet voice in his ear.

"Yeah," his voice cracked, "Yeah, I'm here." He repeated willing his voice to be firm, clam, collected, like he wanted it to be.

"You're doing great Jack," she assured him, "Sayid thinks you should take this opportunity to get to Ben's office though, maybe find some business files." She explained.

"Right…right," Jack nodded, forcing himself to think about the task at hand. He entered back into the great hall.

"Leave out the door on your left, building specs say that should put you in a long hallway."

"Okay, yeah, I'm in. There are about forty doors here."

"Our…source…says that it's the 3rd on the right."

Slipping into the room silently, Jack checked to make sure there was no one in the hall watching him.

"You just need to get the chip within a foot of Ben's computer; then we'll be able to 'borrow' the files."

Jack closed the door and approached the computer nodding before he realized that Kate couldn't see him, "Right, yeah, that should be good."

"It is. The files are downloading. It might take a few minutes."

Jack stood silently, waiting for the bar to load.

The door opened. A man with small beady eyes appeared.

"What the hell are you doing in here?"

"Jack, the files are almost loaded, try to stall for 30 seconds," Kate whispered into his ear, her voice panicked.

"I uh, I was just looking for a bathroom," Jack laughed nervously, running a hand through his hair. "This uh, isn't it," The man stepped into the room, fist clenched.

"Bathrooms two doors down, on your left." He jerked his head in the direction he'd just mentioned.

"Jack just a few more seconds."

"Right, thanks," Jack said, still not moving, feeling his heart pounding in his ears. He paused, "This office is really nice, whose is it?" he asked, trying to be nonchalant.

The man's small eyes narrowed, "Dinners started. I suggest you do your business and rejoin the party."

"We got it Jack."

Jack smiled and moved towards the door. "Right, of course."

The man didn't move, instead forcing Jack to move around him to get to the exit. Jack turned and headed towards the bathroom. He closed the door behind him and let out a long breathe.

"You did great Jack," Kate said quietly. "Just take a minute to calm down and then head back out to dinner. That's more than enough work for now."

**DINING HALL:**

Pickett strode across the room purposefully. Ben saw him approaching and dabbed the corners of his mouth with a napkin, excusing himself from the surrounding dinner guests.

"Yes Pickett?" Ben asked in a hushed voice as the man approached.

"There was a fellow snooping 'round yer office a minute ago," Pickett reported quietly.

Ben straightened, "Did you get his name."

Pickett shook his head, "That guy you were talking to on the balcony earlier. The one with the buzzed hair."

Ben's thin lips drew tighter together.

Ben watched as Jack entered the dining hall. "Good work Danny, go grab yourself a drink," Ben said quietly, dismissing his flunky.

Pickett grunted and did as he was told.

"Jack!" Ben called, returning to his seat. Jack looked up from the buffet to see him. "There's a seat for you right here," Ben said, indicating to one just to his right.

Jack nodded and moved to join.

"Jack, there are some people here I would like you to meet; Mr. Eko," the large man nodded, "Edward Mars," the agent gave a small grunt, his nose scrunched disgruntly, "and Juliet Burke," he finished, nodding to the gorgeous blonde sitting to his left. The blonde quickly forced a strained smile. Ben grinned, "Don't let her attitude fool you Jack. She's just nervous. This is her first 'business' event too."

Jack offered the woman a small but genuine smile in return, unable to help the rush of familiarity he felt looking at her. She was so much like Sarah, but from the looks of it, in the same boat as him. "It's nice to meet you," he said extending, and shaking her hand. Her smile grew as she did, and Jack felt a small weight lift from his shoulders. His words to her had been the first genuine thing he'd said all night.

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_Oh Jack. Yep. Juliet. Is here. How's that for a decent return chapter? Not a heck of a lot of Jate, but with Juliet in the picture, I think most of you are capable of figuring out where this is going. (not that we jaters need any more angst at the moment given the complete dry spell on the show. Although given the Desmond episode and last nights, I'm 200% confident about Jate. [Ironically, my theory hinges on Juliet actually]) Anyways, This chapter, givent he lack of Jate was hard to write, but I'm excited about the next chap, and getting some reviews again was what really made me finally get off my butt and write this so truly, the moral of the story is.... reviews matter!/will eventually get me to do things. _

_8 reviews=update._


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